The Promise of Unbending Love
by Lia-Osaka92
Summary: Seven years after breaking up, Takao and Midorima have a chance reencounter under the veil of Midorima's upcoming wedding. Eventually MidoTaka
1. Prologue: You're okay with gay people

**Warning**: Rated for domestic violence, physical and verbal abuse and implied rape.

I won't say much since this is just the introduction. I know there's that big ugly warning above, but I want to clarify that I understand how serious the topic is and that I'd never go for the cheap rape-becomes-love turn around, and that our boys would never hurt each other like that. I hope you can give me and this story the benefit of the doubt and keep reading.

**The Promise of Unbending Love**

**Prologue**

**You're okay with gay people, right?**

Midorima pressed the button and heard the ringing of the bell. He didn't have to wait long until the door opened.

"Oh, hello, Shin-chan. Right on time as usual."

The young man groaned. "I have told you countless times not to call me that."

"But I don't understand why. It's such a cute name. It suits you perfectly."

"I don't like it. Are you ready yet? We are going to be late."

She frowned for a split second, but ultimately shrugged. "Give me a minute, I'm not done with my make-up yet."

He didn't reply and just stood by the door, hoping she would be done soon. Karasuma Kanako was a very proper and intelligent lady, with beautiful burgundy hair, elegant long limbs and smart obsidian-colored eyes. In Midorima's opinion, she didn't need any make-up to look beautiful (and he wouldn't really care, even if she did), but she always took at least an hour applying expensive European miracle products to beautify herself.

"You know, Shin-chan, if you hate the name so much, I can start calling you 'Darling' once we're married."

He groaned again. Ever since the date of their wedding had been decided, she kept talking about how it would be when they finally got married, and he honestly didn't want to think about it at all.

They had been engaged for a year and a half now. Kanako's family was wealthy and influential, and his parents had been delighted to hear she was interested in their son. Marrying her would improve the Midorima family status, and become a great platform for their business -that was already very large and well-known locally- to expand and aim for the bigger national and international market. Shintarou's father in particular was really eager to play with the business grown-ups.

"Remind me why do we have to do this?"

As could be inferred, Shintarou himself was not especially excited about his marriage prospects, and had never been. But he'd long given up on romance, and hoped he would be able to escape his unattractive future domestic life by immersing himself in work, just like he'd been evading everything related to their relationship by taking a three-year internship in a prestigious American hospital.

"Well, Sei-chan thought it would be a good idea."

Kanako was Akashi's cousin, and her family was just one of many branches of the corporative monster known as the Akashi Group. They had first met in Akashi's 20th birthday party, in which he officially became vice-president of his father's empire. The Karasuma family's most important trade was traditional Japanese products, so when Kanako heard the Midorimas owned a large business in Tokyo that specialized in tea ceremony related products, from the cups and pots to the tea leaves, all cherry-picked from the finest producers in the region, she was immediately interested. Their marriage was mostly a formality to consummate the merging of the Midorima and Karasuma companies.

"Alright, I'm ready, let's go."

She was wearing an elegant navy blue short dress, ideal for a spring night out in Tokyo, a light gray cardigan and a black satin scarf, with dark-red high heels that matched the color of her hair. She had arranged a double date with one of her friends, whose family owned a large amount of tea plantations in Uji. Establishing amicable business relationships with him would give Midorima's family the opportunity to get their hands on higher quality tea leaves at preferential prices.

They were supposed to meet at Ryugin, one of the finest Japanese restaurants in Tokyo. To make the meeting lighter and less business-like, they had agreed on a double date, and so Kanako's friend would bring his boyfriend to the meeting.

"You're okay with gay people, right?" Kanako had asked when the proposal first came up. "I've heard your family is a little bit uptight about that."

If Midorima hadn't been so thoroughly unamused by the scenario, he would've laughed at the question and how absurd it was. Not that she'd know.

They arrived exactly on time for their reservation, but their companions weren't there yet, so they went ahead and sat down on a private booth to wait for them. Kanako's friend showed up just a few minutes later.

"Kana! Sorry for the delay, I hope we didn't make you wait too long."

He looked around 25 years of age, was of average height, with short and clean brown hair and barely tanned skin. He had dark green eyes and was wearing an informal white shirt with black stripes and a brown jacket.

"Don't worry Tou-chan, we just got here. Didn't your boyfriend come? I was excited to meet him." Kanako greeted cheerfully.

"Oh, he went to the washroom, he said he came on the Metro and his hands were filthy." The man then turned his attention to Midorima. "You must be Kana's fiancé, right? My name is Tozai Toujirou, pleasure to meet you." He bowed and handed him his business card that listed him as Director of the Tokyo Branch of _Toujicha_ company.

"Midorima Shintarou, pleased to make your acquaintance." He felt a little self-conscious about his lack of a presentation card, so he bowed more deeply than he probably should. He really wasn't interested in the world of entrepreneurs; even if this endeavor with the Karasuma took off, he had no intention of taking over the family business. He had studied hard to get into medical school and get a job in one of the most important hospitals in Tokyo, and he wasn't going to throw that away and trade it for the life of a regular salaryman.

"Sorry Touji, I couldn't find the restroom."

Midorima's ears rang when they heard that voice. It must be his imagination, he told himself, and he froze in his place when he saw the man that appeared behind Tozai.

"Perfect timing actually, I was starting to feel lonely with these lovebirds. You guys, this is my boyfriend Ka-"

"Takao?"

The raven-haired man snapped to look at him and his heart seemed to stop when his emerald eyes met the familiar silver pair.

"S-Shin-chan…"

**To be continued**

So I'm doing a triple feature this week, meaning I'm uploading two new chapters from on-going MidoTaka stories and the beginning of this new story. As a celebration I wanted to make a small game. If anyone has read more than one of my MidoTaka stories (10 so far) you may have noticed a handful of recurring head canons. For example, in all the stories that deal with hospitals, you'll see Dr. Ienaga Hideko show up. For the porny stuff, Takao is a power bottom who really likes taking dick up his ass. If you can spot any other repetitive features, write them in a review or PM and I'll write a one-shot for you. You may request something from any (BL) pairing _from any series I have written about_, not only KuroBas (I do have a handful of pairings I won't write, but I won't mention them unless they're brought up, these notes are already humongous enough). You can give me a prompt for a new chapter in the _Basketball Jersey_ PWP series, or maybe something for my YamaGoku _Finestra_ collection. Since I'm not working on any projects right now and my reader pool is relatively small, I think I can have a handful of them done in a relatively short time. Of course, this is limited to one per person so everyone has equal chances.

Anyway, back to this story, it completely took over me around two months ago and I've been writing it like a maniac ever since, my obsession with this pairing keeps growing every day. I swear I've been late to work and neglected school stuff because I was too caught up writing it. And finally it's done! It's also the longest story I've written in a while (22 chapters total). I plan to publish a new chapter every two weeks, I hope you guys can be patient with me. I can promise I won't leave the story halfway written for eternity, since basically 21 out of 22 chapters are already in my computer, of that you can rest assured.

I just want to point out a few random facts: the city of Uji is the Meca of Japanese green tea. I visited it twice and it's a delightful city with lots of places to buy delicious green tea products. Ryugin is a real restaurant in Roppongi, Tokyo, it specializes in traditional Japanese food and it's mad expensive. Karasuma and Tozai are the two subway lines that run through Kyoto. I'm terrible to come up with names, so I just pick a theme and stick to it. The name of Toujiro's company "Toujicha" is a play on words "Tou" from Tozai (written with the kanji for East) "Uji" as in the city and "cha" from the word for tea. Although I envision the company name written in hiragana, so it could mean both "Tea from eastern Uji" as well as "Touji's tea". Don't think anyone cares about it, I just wanted to say it.

Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it. Sorry for the humongous notes. Please R&amp;R. Any sort of comments are deeply appreciated.


	2. What he does to me

**Chapter 1**

**What he does to me**

Midorima stormed into his bedroom and slammed the door behind him. He dug his cellphone out of his pocket and pressed number 5 on his speed-dial. The line rang twice before the phone was answered on the other end.

"Good evening, Shintarou."

"What the fuck were you thinking?!" he bellowed on the phone, letting all his contained anger burst.

Akashi was unfazed by the explosion. "I am afraid I don't understand. Would you care to elaborate? It must be very serious to make you speak such profanities."

The green-haired man was on the verge of throwing the phone out the window. "It was you who got the idea of this 'business double date' in Kanako's head!"

The emperor sighed. This is exactly why he'd ordered his cousin not to tell Midorima about whose idea it was. "Did it not go well?" he feigned ignorance.

"You're not fooling me, bastard! Do you really think I'd believe that you didn't know about it? Don't insult my intelligence."

Well, he hadn't expected to fix everything in one night, but he was mildly taken aback by how furious his former teammate was. "I believe you need to calm down. If you keep playing the pronoun game, I will never understand what is upsetting you so."

He heard Midorima snarl in frustration. "You knew! That this Tozai guy was…" he didn't want to say the words out loud. "that he would bring Takao to the meeting." His eyes were starting to sting a little. "What is your goddamn problem? Did you think it would be amusing?" It had been 7 years already, he'd hoped those feelings would be buried deep down somewhere they wouldn't bother him anymore, but he'd been clearly mistaken.

* * *

"Takao…"

"Sh-Shin-chan?"

They stared at each other, frozen on their spot. Kanako quirked her eyebrows in curiosity. The vein in Toujiro's forehead popped and throbbed.

"Do you know each other?" Kanako asked, breaking the tension and pulling them both back to reality. Takao was the first to wake from his shock-induced stupor.

"Oh! Y-yeah, we were c-c-classmates in High School." The former Point Guard stuttered, turning to face the beautiful woman and avoiding looking at his former teammate. "Pardon my rudeness, I'm Takao Kazunari. It's a pleasure to meet you." He bowed deeply, a rehearsed polite smile appearing on his face.

She smiled back, delighted. "My, this is indeed a very small world." she giggled as everyone went back to their sitting positions. "Actually, I believe I remember your face… Oh, you were in the same basketball team, isn't that right, Shin-chan?"

Takao bit his lip. Midorima nodded quietly, his eyes glued to the table.

The young woman didn't seem to notice the heavy atmosphere that had taken over their small private booth and started browsing through the menu. "Surely you've already been invited to the wedding, then. I know Shin-chan is very close with his old teammates."

The clear-eyed man looked up to meet her eyes, hoping his state of distress was not too evident. "W-w-wedding? I'm afraid me and Shi… M-midorima haven't been in touch for a couple of years."

"Oh, really? Well, then I'm inviting you now! We really need more guests for the groom's side, Shin-chan here doesn't really have many friends."

Takao's head was spinning trying to keep up with everything that was happening and doing his best effort not to look like a retarded idiot.

"I'm sorry, I feel a little bit out of the loop. W-whose wedding are we talking about, right now?"

Midorima was stunned to hear Takao keeping up with the conversation so naturally. He was doing his best effort not to flee from this accursed meeting, but Takao didn't seem to be having any trouble whatsoever. He hoped against all hopes that no one asked him anything, because he wasn't sure he would be able to stay calm if he was forced to interact with the other occupants of the table. This was never supposed to happen. Seven years ago Takao Kazunari had vanished from his life, and he had never hoped to meet him again; especially not in these circumstances.

"Me and Shin-chan, of course!" Kanako chirped gleefully and Midorima really wished the ground would crack open and swallow him alive.

* * *

Akashi heard his friend sobbing on the other side of the line.

"How _could_ you do this to me?"

Tears were now running freely down his face. As if marrying this random girl so his father could further his business agenda wouldn't make him miserable enough, he'd have to do it with _Takao and his new boyfriend _standing in the same room, breathing the same air, and that thought made him feel like he was suffocating.

"Forgive me, Shintarou. I did not expect it would affect you this much, so I didn't warn you beforehand."

Midorima snarled again, fury welling up inside him once again. "I said cut the bullshit! _You_ know better than anyone what he _does_ to me!" he sank to his knees, shut the phone and threw it across the room, not caring anymore. "Fuck damnit!"

The emperor heard a click that signed their conversation had been cut and he put his cellphone away, sighing.

That had definitely not gone according to plan.

**To be continued **

Well, because this chapter is very short I decided to upload it earlier. I won't say much more because well, it's just really short, and it's painful to write my dear Shin-chan being so heartbroken. I'll have a new chapter up next Friday too, because this one is so blastedly short.

Hope you enjoy and please comment.


	3. I'll do it gladly

**Warnings: **Harsh verbal abuse and implied rape

**Chapter 2**

**I'll do it gladly**

"It's okay, Touji, I'll take the subway home, it's only a couple stations." He insisted, trying his best not to sound nervous. Midorima and his fianceé had driven away a couple of minutes ago, and now it was only the two of them in the street.

His boyfriend was grinning, but rather than an actual smile, it was closer to a malicious smirk. "I couldn't let you go alone at this hour, could I, Kazu? That would make me a terrible boyfriend." He pinned him against the wall and gave him a quick, possessive kiss. "C'mon, I'll drive, I promise I won't bite."

He sighed in defeat, knowing he was cornered, and got on the car, with the certainty that Toujiro had no intention of upholding that promise.

* * *

Takao was grateful that his brain had a speedy auto-pilot function that allowed him to keep the conversation without having to process what was being said, otherwise he would've completely shut down the moment he heard Shin-chan was getting married. And that he was now expected to go and watch him do it.

It all happened too fast. Not two hours ago, Toujiro had invited him to a fancy double-date dinner in a very nice restaurant with one of his friends. He hadn't had any plans for the evening and he needed a breather from all the final exams, and although Takao wasn't as keen on spending time with his boyfriend as he'd once been, the man had an impeccable taste for good food, so there was no way this could go wrong.

Unless Toujiro's friend happened to be Midorima Shintarou's soon-to-be bride. For some reason, the possibility hadn't remotely crossed his mind. If this was not bad enough, he was sure Toujiro realized that something was amiss between the two ex-teammates, and this was making him increasingly angry, if the throbbing vein on his forehead was anything to go by. All he could do was give his best effort to appear unfazed and hope this dinner ended as soon as possible.

"Hey, that's wonderful! Congratulations! You know, Midorima wasn't very popular when we were in school, I never imagined he'd nail a beauty like you Kanako-san." His face was starting to hurt from holding the forced grin.

"Oh dear, you're flattering me too much. How come Tou-chan never introduced us before? You're such a delight."

Takao forced his grin to go wider.

"Hey, I just had an idea! You know we're doing a western style wedding and everything…"

"Western? Isn't it a bit ironic given how your company's motto is 'Preserve our traditions, preserve Japan'?" Toujiro interrupted, taking a sip of the warm green tea they had been served.

She huffed. "You're kidding, right? Who would want one of those horrible wedding kimono when western dresses are so beautiful? I don't need to like the stuff to sell it."

Takao took a sip of his tea to keep from snapping. Shin-chan's family _loved_ Japanese traditions, they were 100% committed to their trade. They didn't just stand around selling quirky "Cool Japan" souvenirs to tourists, every member of the family valued and honored the importance of the tea ceremony. It was the reason customers liked and trusted them. He wasn't feeling comfortable hearing that Shin-chan's business would be swallowed by someone who didn't uphold the same values.

"Anyway, Kazu-chan (I can call you that, can't I? You're such a cutie after all), I'm sure you've seen it in the movies, how in these western weddings, the guy always asks his best friend to be his best man. And Shin-chan here doesn't really have many friends; I've been _begging_ him to just pick someone for months, but you know him, he's just too difficult. So it just occurred to me that _you_ could do it!"

Takao went mute. This had to be a joke. Him? Shin-chan's "best man" for his wedding? Actually, it would be more appropriate to say it was his worst nightmare come true: watching Shin-chan get married, and having to stand there, smile, and give him his blessing.

"Wow, I'm honored, but I don't think I'd make a good job for such an important position. As I said, Shi-M-midorima and I haven't been in touch for a while, and I don't really know what he likes and that stuff…"

Lies, all lies. Midorima twitched. He knew Takao was lying. They both knew. Because no one in the entire world knew Midorima like Takao did. His favorite food, his favorite color, what he liked and what he hated. His obsession with horoscopes and his shoe size. How he'd been bullied all his life for being so weird and antisocial. How he cared and protected his younger sister, even if they didn't get along. How much he respected his former Teikou comrades, and how much he loved basketball. That he was skilled with his hands, not only when it came to shooting, but also playing the piano and doing calligraphy. That he disliked cats, but found rabbits very cute. That he loved and respected his parents, even if he didn't always agree with them, and would never do anything to upset them, even if it made him unhappy in the long term. That he may be rough and unapproachable on the outside, but deep down he was warm and full of love to give.

He knew all that and so much more than Karasuma Kanako would ever come even close to understanding, and yet she was the one marrying Midorima.

"Don't be silly, Kazu, look at her, poor Kana is desperate." Toujiro patted his shoulder, and although he was smiling, his gaze was dark and menacing. "Say you'll do it gladly, c'mon."

Takao finally dared to take a sideways glance at Midorima. The green-haired man had been staring quietly at the table for the entire meeting, and had barely touched his food. He took a deep breath before gulping down a cup of sake that he'd been unwilling to drink, worried that the alcohol would make him do or say things he couldn't take back. After the burning feeling had passed his throat, he once again met Kanako's beautiful eyes and forced an even wider grin on his face.

"I'll do it gladly."

* * *

They'd been driving quietly for a few minutes when Toujiro broke the silence.

"So that was the famous Shin-chan, huh?" he spat with feigned interest.

Of course he had caught on. Shit.

"What? Oh, Midorima? No, not at all, that guy's just-"

He was interrupted by a harsh slap on his face.

"Don't play me for a fool _Kazu_. You think I wouldn't notice? D'you really think I wouldn't see the way you look at the man whose name you scream when I'm fucking you?" He purred dangerously, taking a swift bite at Takao's lower lip, drawing a few drops of blood.

Takao tried to inch as far away from his boyfriend as the car permitted. "I-it's not what you think, Touji, I swear. I-it was a long time ago, I'm with you now!" he tried to rack his brain for something that would satisfy the powerful businessman, but he couldn't come up with anything. That he was this angry even though six months had passed since that one particular incident was a sign that nothing Takao could do or say would change his fate

"Oh, is that so? You never got your slutty hole pounded by that giant? I bet he's got a big one, that's how your ass-cunt got so loose."

Takao was gasping for breath; tears had started to trickle the corners of his eyes.

"I think I know what happened. I bet that guy caught you drooling for his big cock in the shower rooms. No, wait, I bet you begged him for it and he was so grossed out by your sluttiness he decided to teach you a lesson, huh? He fed you lies of love and you swallowed them all because you're so stupid and gullible. He took advantage of your stupidity so he could taste your sweet slutty hole and then he threw you aside. A nice rich boy like him could never degrade himself for a cock-loving whore like you."

He was jumping out of the car. He would jump out of the car, even if it killed him. It was better than listening to all of this.

"N-n-no! T-th-that's n-n-ot what…"

It wasn't true. He didn't know, he'd never understand. Shin-chan would never do that, not even to someone he hated. Because Shin-chan's love had always been pure and honest, warm and gentle. Shin-chan would never hurt him or call him any of those names.

When he finally managed to push the car door open, he realized the vehicle was no longer moving. He fell on the concrete and looked up, realizing they were in front of his apartment complex, but when he tried to stand up and make a run for it, Toujiro pulled him back into the car and locked all doors. He was trapped.

"Trying to run away, my dear Kazu? I can't let you do that, can I? What kind of boyfriend would I be if I just left you unpunished? I have to teach you a lesson. I'll make it so my dick is imprinted in all your slutty holes. That should get you to stop thinking about any other guy." He was soon pinned against the door; one of Toujiro's hands was grabbing him by the hair while the other was occupied loosening his pants. "You understand why I do this, don't you? My boyfriend is going to be spending so much time with another guy, I have to take some precautions."

The thought of pleading for forgiveness crossed his mind, but he knew this was already past any salvation. He tried to pull away, but Toujiro was taller and stronger than him. Tears were streaming down his face and he was paralyzed with terror.

"No, please! Please, please, don't do this! You don't have to do it, please! Please stop!"

His cries and screams went unheard in the dead of the night.

**To be continued**

I won't say much because this was a difficult chapter to write, and I imagine it's as difficult to read. Originally, these first three chapters were part of one long prologue to get to know where each of them is standing now, how they meet again and the fallout from that meeting, but I thought of breaking it into three to have a pause in between each moment and mark the changes in tone.

Next chapter will be up in two weeks, I hope to hear your opinions 'til then. The game I offered at the end of the prologue is still on, btw, if anyone's interested. Thanks for reading and for all the comments and favs.


	4. An auspicious day

**Warnings: **Same as previous chapter

**Chapter 3**

**An auspicious day**

If Midorima had been unexcited about dinner with a stranger last night, he was even less enthusiastic about his fianceé's plans for today. Kanako had taken a strong liking to Takao and had insisted that he helped them pick some of the stuff for the wedding. "He looks like the kind of gay that has great taste for fashion and fancy things." She said. "You're hardly cooperating at all, and I do need some help, you know?"

Needless to say, he was almost willing to play sick if that got him out of this commitment. His eyes were still stingy from crying, and he definitely didn't want Takao to notice it.

Takao was already waiting for them when they arrived to their meeting spot. He was wearing a turtle neck shirt, which was odd considering they were in the middle of May. Midorima didn't fail to notice that his lips were slightly swollen and he had dark circles under the eyes. The green-haired prodigy understood too well what this was and he had to turn away and stop looking at the shorter man's face, for his mind was being flooded with images he never wanted to see.

"Oh dear, sorry for the wait Kazu-chan! I hope you haven't waited for long."

Takao smiled meekly. "Not at all, I just got here, don't worry."

"Great then, we have a long day ahead of us, so we should get going right away."

She wasn't lying. For the next nine hours they went hopping from store to store looking for the right flower arrangements for the wedding. Midorima had tried to convince Kanako to order something from an ikebana master that often provided for his own house, but she rejected the idea.

"Don't be silly, if we're going to have a big wide wedding I want to have flowers that fit the occasion. Everything _has_ to be big, what's the point otherwise?"

Takao proved to be surprisingly helpful. Midorima already knew the ex-Point Guard had a very fine taste, and a good eye for beauty in general, so once Kanako told him what she wanted he was quick to make suggestions and explain why this or that flower would be better for the setting, etcetera.

The green-haired doctor found himself quite disheartened when he realized Takao was probably more keen on this wedding than the groom himself.

* * *

This was, hands down, the worst day of Takao's life. His entire body was still in pain from what Toujiro had done last night, and he had been forced to cover every inch of skin with clothes so that no one could see the bruises and cuts spread all over his body. His eyes were stingy, he'd cried them dry last night and still hadn't slept at all; it took every ounce of brain power to keep from fainting. As if he was not suffering enough, he'd had to hold this fake smile all day and now his face –that Toujiro had spared because he didn't want people asking questions- was numb too.

He and Shin-chan hadn't exchanged a single word all day, and had barely looked each other in the eye, but Kanako didn't seem to notice. She was such a typical bridezilla Takao wanted to die. She was a very nice girl alright, and they would've probably become very good friends if she wasn't the woman marrying the love of his life, but he was _not_ having a good day and she was so indecisive it was pissing him off. They'd already been to 20 shops, most of which had very good selections of flowers and designs, and each time she'd say she absolutely loved this one the most, but two seconds later she would decide it wasn't good enough. Finally, Midorima said if she didn't choose anything today, he'd ask for something from the ikebana shop so she picked a bouquet with purple orchids, white lilies and large white calla lilies that were dyed purple on the inside and had crystals embedded on the petals. Takao found it quite ironic that she picked flowers that spoke of royalty, beauty and majesty, instead of more typical wedding flowers that meant eternal love, but then he figured this wedding was more about her showing off than some sort of romantic promise. He wondered if it was the same for Shin-chan, but he realized he didn't want to know whether he loved her or not.

After the order had been placed, Takao was about to excuse himself and run for his life, hoping Kanako wouldn't want his help anymore (but who was he kidding, she totally would, that was the price of being so unconsciously likable, having to hang out with the woman marrying your ex-boyfriend that you're still in love with), when she spoke up.

"Hey, Shin-chan, we should give Kazu-chan a ride home, he's been so helpful!"

Takao cringed. Could this day get any worse?

"That's not necessary haha, don't worry, I'll just take the subway, it's not that far away" that was of course a blatant lie, his apartment was on the opposite side of the city, but he definitely didn't want to be in a small confined space with Midorima and his soon-to-be wife.

"Oh, it's no trouble at all! It's the least we can do to pay you back for your time. Come on, Shin-chan, tell him!"

Midorima seemed completely unamused about getting involved in this conversation, and Takao couldn't blame him. He was starting to think Kanako was not completely oblivious to the tension between them and was doing all of this on purpose, although for what reason he couldn't tell.

"If he doesn't want to, you shouldn't force him. He must be tired of being dragged along by you all day, I'm sure he wants some peace and quiet."

Takao wasn't sure if he was relieved that Midorima understood (probably shared) his reluctance to the car ride, or if he was disappointed that the green-haired giant didn't want to spend any more time with him either. He didn't want to think too hard about it.

"Nonsense! Stop arguing, you're coming with us and that's final."

The raven-haired man sighed unhappily and by the time they reached Midorima's car he was so drained he didn't even put up any resistance when he was shoved in the front seat. They drove in silence for about ten minutes when the car stopped in front of a luxurious apartment complex and Kanako got off.

"Thanks again for everything Kazu-chan, I'll call you soon, OK?" she said before closing the door.

_Damn_.

They drove in awkward silence for ten more minutes before Takao decided this was enough.

"You don't have to drive me there, you know? Just drop me off at any subway station and I'll manage."

Midorima didn't turn his head to look at him. Seven years ago, the green-haired prodigy hadn't learnt how to drive yet, and in fact had Takao pulling him in a rickshaw all the way to school every day. The shorter man couldn't help but notice how handsome he looked with his hands on the steering wheel and his emerald eyes fixed on the road.

"Kanako is right, though. It's the least I can do after today. I'm sorry that she's putting you through this."

_Ah, so he calls her by her given name too_. Takao thought, turning to look out the window. _He never did that for me, no matter how many times I asked_. This was horrible. He needed to get off this car or he would end up crying, perhaps he'd even beg Midorima to forget everything he'd said, forget these seven years and his engagement and everything else and just hold him like he used to, but that would be embarrassing as hell, so he had to use every power within himself to hold back.

"Besides, your place is on the way for mine, so it makes more sense like this."

Oh. He realized he hadn't told Midorima his new address.

"Ah, damn, I forgot to tell you. I'm not living with my folks any more, I've got my own place now."

Midorima seemed surprised to hear it. "Why did you move out? I thought you liked that place. Are you living with… with someone else now?"

Takao could tell Shin-chan was thinking of Toujiro, and for a moment he blushed, wondering if maybe the green-haired giant was feeling jealous. But he shook that thought away. It was natural to have a hard time talking about your ex's current lovers, and Midorima had always struggled with words anyway. He couldn't get hung up on petty stuff like that, they weren't high-schoolers any more.

"What, Touji? No, not at all, we're not at that point yet." and they would never be. "He's always traveling so it would be kind of pointless anyway. I just wanted my own space, you know? Kazuha is all grown up now, she's got her boyband music at top volume all day long and it felt about right that I left." That was of course an excuse. He'd moved out of his parents' place right after graduating high school because he couldn't stay in the same neighborhood as Midorima and risk meeting him by chance. He'd been too heartbroken and didn't trust himself to be able to handle such a thing. Anyway, this was a good opportunity. "I really don't want to get you out of your way, the Ginza line runs close by, you can just drop me here."

Midorima seemed deaf to his request, though. "Tell me your address, I already said I'd take you."

Takao huffed. It was as if these people were trying with all their might to make him miserable.

* * *

Once again the silence had been hanging over their heads for a while (Takao had clearly lied about living 'close by') and Midorima started to wonder if it wouldn't have been better to just drop Takao by the subway as he'd requested. He didn't know what had possessed him to do it. A part of him (probably the part of him that was still a teenager and couldn't yet understand how the best thing that had ever happened to him had gone so wrong) had just been a little bit thrilled to have some time alone with Takao after all these years, although to what purpose he did not know (maybe to say he was sorry, although he wasn't sure yet about what he should be apologizing for, and maybe he could start asking "why?", because seven years ago Takao had suddenly started screaming at him and said they were 'through' and then vanished from his life before he could catch up to anything, but maybe he should just keep quiet because thinking about it made him want to cry).

He took a sideways glance to get a good look on his former teammate. He'd been so busy avoiding him and trying not to look him in the eye (because reading people was one of Takao's fortes and he knew that if their eyes crossed he'd notice how Midorima never stopped loving him, and that should never happen), that he hadn't gotten the chance to actually see Takao, even though they'd spent the last nine hours together. He hadn't changed much, to be honest. He'd grown just a little bit taller, but anyone who didn't know Takao as well as Midorima did wouldn't notice. He was obviously still playing basketball, he hadn't lost any of his muscular build, although he did look more frail than Midorima remembered. He was very handsome (but then again, Takao had always been so), but his features looked sharper, he was much more mature looking in an oddly attractive way. His lovely clear eyes seemed less lively than before, but that was probably due to the dark circles under them. The shorter man would twitch in his seat from time to time as if he were in pain, but Midorima dared not ask.

His heart started beating faster as he took in his former lover's appearance and his teenager side began wondering if this wasn't a good opportunity to patch things up, start anew, figure out what had gone wrong and fix it, tell Takao how much he missed him, how much he wanted him back in his life, just how much he loved him and maybe…

"So when's the wedding, anyway?"

The teenager in him died as if he'd been shot through the heart, and all those ridiculous hopes and dreams died with him. Of course it was too late to patch things up. He was engaged. Takao had a boyfriend. There was no going back to the time when they'd shared their first kiss under the cherry blossoms and stared at each other's eyes for what felt like eternity.

"October 6. The priest at Kanako's temple said it would be an auspicious day for a wedding. She also wants to have it during _Koyou_, she wants red leaves in the background to match her hair or something."

He bit his lip. It was a good thing that he'd long learnt how to stop himself from crying in public. He would never forgive Akashi for making him go through this. He couldn't understand what his friend had been thinking.

"Hm. What did Oha-Asa have to say about that?"

He shrugged. "Who knows."

He'd stopped listening to Oha-Asa a long time ago, when he lost Takao and every hope for happiness he'd ever had. He'd been carrying his lucky item that day, and it obviously hadn't worked, so he found no point in going through the trouble again.

They drove the rest of the way in silence.

* * *

"So… thanks for driving me all the way here, I'm sorry for the trouble."

"I'm the one who should apologize, Kanako is taking advantage of you too much. You should tell her to back off a little or you'll never see the end of it."

Takao shook his head. "It's okay, it doesn't bother me so much. See you later."

Midorima waved faintly and drove off soon after. Takao sighed with relief, he wasn't sure he'd be able to keep going for much longer, he was too exhausted. He wasn't even going to bother with a bath, he dropped his things at the entrance and was ready to make a bee-line to his bedroom when he noticed someone else's pair of shoes lined at the _genkan_.

"Welcome home, _my dear Kazu_. Did you have fun with your Shin-chan today? I bet you did."

Shit, what had he ever done to deserve this? He'd hoped Toujiro wouldn't bother him for the rest of the week at least. "I-I wouldn't say fun exactly haha. Kanako-san is very energetic so I'm really tired, would you mind if I go to bed right away? You may stay over if you want." Not that he really believed he would get away with it, but the least he could do was try.

"Oh, are you? I can't let you do that, can I? Not when you stink of some other man. Are you back to being good friends now? He even bothered driving you all the way here, after all." He was now standing right in front of him and he cupped his chin with his rough hands. "I bet he said he'd do it if you sucked his dick dry. I don't blame him, you're such an experienced whore you've gotten pretty good at that. And you must've enjoyed it too, didn't you, little slut?"

Takao was scared. His body hadn't recovered at all from yesterday, but Toujiro seemed to have no intention to take that into consideration. At this point he was ready to give up on begging or trying to explain himself, since it seemed to get Toujiro more into it, rather than put him off.

"Not even trying to excuse yourself, I see. I'm sure you enjoyed it so much you got hard from sucking his dick. But he didn't touch you, did he? He must've thought you were so disgusting, getting all excited from getting your mouth fucked."

_When is this going to stop?_

"I wonder what your precious Shin-chan would say if he saw all the marks I've left on you. He'd surely find you gross. Hey, I'll let you fuck him if you show them to him. Although he may find you so disgusting he won't want to do it."

He'd gladly take any form of physical punishment if it made Toujiro shut up. He could handle any sort of physical pain, but he couldn't bear with him saying such horrible things about Shin-chan. Even if he knew they were false, his mind would instantly picture the green-haired man glaring at him with disgust in his emerald eyes and pushing him away. It made his eyes overflow with tears.

_Get away from me, you fucking slut._

"Don't worry, Kazu, I'll make sure to leave plenty of marks so you can show him your disgusting true self."

**To be continued.**

In the language of flowers orchids represent refinement and luxury, white lilies symbolize purity and calla lilies represent royal beauty. Purple is the color associated with royalty. Basically Kanako's flowers are all about her super inflated ego. I don't hate her, I didn't want to make her a detestable bitch, but she's full of herself as fuck (then again, Shin-chan is totes full of himself too, so that's one thing they share). The arrangement I described exists, you can go to affluencefloral at tripod and visit their portfolio, it's the first picture. Funnily, I found it and thought "oh, this looks good" and just _then_ decided to look up what the flowers meant so it was just fate for Kanako to have these super arrogant flowers.

_Koyou_ is the specific season in Japan in which the momiji leaves turn red. Many temples have lots of momiji trees, so when the season comes the scenery becomes breathtakingly beautiful.

I don't really have much else to say because it's hard to add something after writing Takao in such a painful and horrible situation and I just want him to get out of it asap. I hope to hear your comments and thanks for reading. Next chapter is up in two weeks! This one's longer than the previous three, so I hope that makes up for the wait.


	5. Can't we get over this charade?

**Please do read the end of chapter notes**

**Warnings: **Implied rape and abuse, implied consensual sex

**Chapter 4 **

**Can't we get this charade over with?**

It was quite a lucky occurrence that his appointment with Midorima and Kanako had been canceled at the last minute (for reasons he didn't remember or care about), because he wouldn't be able to move to save his life. There was not an inch of his body that wasn't sore and screaming in agony, and judging by the blood on the floor, he was probably torn inside. He wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad one that he was so used to this he now kept bottles of ointment all over the house, just in case he woke up incapable of moving (which seemed to happen awfully often these days.)

Toujiro hadn't always been the manic possessive, abusive monster that had left him naked, bruised and bloody on the living room floor. Or at least, he hadn't seemed like one when they'd first met at a gay bar in Nichoume a year and a half ago. Takao had been bouncing from one informal relationship to the next one for the past four years, but he still had some hopes to fall in love again and mend his broken heart. Toujiro was handsome, confident, intelligent and straightforward. He had a natural ability to flirt and fascinate, and for a full year he'd filled the bill for everything Takao expected from a boyfriend. He was a little rough in bed (in fact, he never quite liked having sex in the bedroom, he mostly preferred the couch, the table or his car), and he'd get overridden with jealousy very often, but Takao had been willing to turn a blind eye to it when everything else was working so well.

One day he was having lunch at Magi Burger when he saw his former senpais Miyaji and Ootsubo walk in. He waved at them cheerfully, they hadn't met in years and he hadn't spent much time with any of his friends recently, so he was thrilled to find some company.

"Hey, long time no see! What're you guys up to?"

It was nice to have someone to chat with. He realized he hadn't been socializing much since he started dating Touji and it was really great to catch up with his old friends. They talked about basketball, their relationships, college and their old classmates, and it was all healthy fun until Miyaji-senpai brought a new topic up.

"By the way, are you still in touch with Ace-sama? You guys were joined by the hip back then, I'm surprised you haven't mentioned him."

He'd managed not to think much about Shin-chan in the past couple of years. Of course he missed him, and his heart hurt remembering how everything ended, but he'd convinced himself that it had been just a teenager romance and that it had been doomed for failure anyway, so he'd tried his best to keep moving forward. Being with Touji seemed to have accomplished that much, or so he wanted to believe.

"Not really, I lost everyone's contact info when my phone fell in the river." He'd actually deleted Midorima's information out of spite when they broke up (and for half a year, every time he received a call from an unknown number, he'd secretly hoped it was Midorima, but it was never him), but they didn't need the specifics. "Why, is something up with him?"

"You wouldn't believe it!" Miyaji seemed excited. "That weirdass horoscope crazy selfish asshole actually landed a hot babe! Captain and I saw them the other day, didn't we?"

Ootsubo-senpai, quite more perceptive than Miyaji had ever been, just nodded faintly and looked at him apologetically, as if he understood why Takao had been trying to avoid the subject, and he probably did.

Takao was surprised to notice how hard it was to force a nonchalant smile on his face. _It's been more than six years, Takao Kazunari, you should be able to take this and be fucking happy that he's moved on._ He told himself, suddenly feeling his eyes sting a little. _You've moved on too, this is ridiculous_. His rational-self kept saying as his brain started flooding with images of Shin-chan holding a girl's hand with his strong, beautiful fingers; awkwardly caressing her hair (and how warm his hands would be, and how gentle his touch), blushing and looking her straight in the eye with a mixture of anxiety and embarrassment and whispering "_I- I… I love you, just so you know_."

And he realized he hadn't moved on at all.

Later that night, Toujiro decided he was in the mood for a booty call and came to visit unannounced, reeking of alcohol. Takao was not in the mood at all, but Toujiro hadn't cared.

"Don't be like that, Kazu, I'll make you feel real good."

Takao gave up, closed his eyes and lay limp with his stomach flat on the sofa, hoping this would be over soon. Toujiro liked rough sex, but Takao would be lying if he said he didn't enjoy it to some extent. When he started feeling good and warm he arched his back and dug his nails on the cushion. With his eyes closed, he remembered the feeling of large basketball-calloused hands stroking his cheek gently, warm emerald eyes looking at him full of passion, sweet, loving whispers coaxing him into ecstasy.

"Sh-Shin-chan…"

And that was when everything started to go wrong.

The next morning, his body bruised and sore, he'd tried to break up with Toujiro. No meaningful relationship could exist with the threat of violence hanging over his head, and someone who would resort to hurt him had no place in his life. But as he opened the apartment door after a final "Now get out" the other man had looked at him with a broken expression. He looked outraged –and Takao feared for his physical safety, especially since his mobility was extremely limited- but deeply miserable at the same time and he wouldn't move an inch. At first Takao was unsettled and thumbed his phone in case he needed to call the police, but before he realized it, he was kneeling and begging for forgiveness, because how could he abandon Touji who had been so nice to him, how could he blame him for reacting badly when Takao had been thinking of another man during sex? And he felt despicable and filthy and all he could do was promise he'd never try to break up again.

He'd hoped that Toujiro's violent streak would subside and that they would be able to leave that incident in the past, but he knew he was deluding himself. Although the "punishments" had become less harsh over the past six months, things would never go back to how they were before, but a part of him felt he deserved it and couldn't bring himself to put an end to it.

Then Shin-chan came back into his life and it had all been spiraling downwards since then.

* * *

A week later Midorima and Kanako met with Takao again to pick the interior decoration. Kanako had already chosen a European-looking cathedral (even though none of them was catholic and neither was the priest performing the ceremony) as the location, but she wanted Takao to help choose the decorations for the ceremony as well as the reception, how to arrange the guests, which colors to use and a long etcetera that Takao hoped could be sorted out quickly. Toujiro had visited last night to make sure he didn't meet Midorima without being properly branded and he hadn't had time to heal from last week, so he was doing his best not to limp.

This time they visited about a dozen shops to choose the furniture and fittings for the salon. Takao had been worried that, considering how she took 9 hours to choose the godforsaken flowers, she'd probably take an entire week picking every piece of furniture, but she actually made up her mind relatively quickly. During lunch she kept gushing excitedly about the Versailles-inspired golden decorations and _rococo_ furniture. For someone of such refined upbringing, Kanako sure had some cheesy tastes, he thought.

"Oh, this looks lovely, doesn't it?" she said as she flipped through the pages of a wedding magazine, focusing on a photograph of a man kneeling in front of a woman and offering her an engagement ring. "I always dreamed of being proposed to but Shin-chan's proposal wasn't exciting at all."

Takao kind of hoped Midorima would put an end to this conversation, but the green-haired doctor had totally tuned out. Even if it hadn't been a romantic proposal, Takao didn't want to hear about it. She was engaged to Shin-chan, the most beautiful tsundere to ever grace the face of the Earth, what else did she want? If she was going to marry Shin-chan, she should know how hard it was for him to be romantic.

"I'll tell you the truth, Kazu-chan, it's not like we're all lovey dovey like you and Tou-chan, you know? This is just a formal business transaction." She said as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Takao would've chuckled at the notion of him and Toujiro being "lovey dovey", but he couldn't afford that when his ribs were so badly wounded.

"We had a marriage interview and after Shin-chan returned from his internship in America, his father sent a letter to mine saying they would like to formalize the agreement. And bam, we got engaged." She sounded pretty disenchanted by the whole thing, not that he could blame her. Takao was surprised. He hadn't failed to notice Midorima's lack of enthusiasm for this ordeal, but he thought it was more that he was annoyed by Kanako's love of fanfare, rather than a general lack of investment in this "business transaction" as Kanako had called it.

"I mean, it's not like I wanted something romantic, but I kind of hoped for something that didn't feel like I was being sold like a piece of meat attached to a large fortune. No offense, Shin-chan." She sighed. Midorima wasn't paying attention to the conversation at all.

"Oh well. At least Shin-chan is very handsome, we'll have very beautiful children no doubt. One of my friends married some middle-aged politician, but he's so ugly she refuses to sleep in the same bedroom, isn't that sad?"

_Extremely sad_, _indeed_, Takao thought. He'd tried to delude himself to believe Shin-chan was happy now, with his upcoming marriage to a smart and beautiful girl, because he was supposed to be supportive and happy for his former partner, but it hurt him to know that the green-haired man was just settling for whatever his family had found convenient, even if that wouldn't make him happy. Had he at least tried to find a girl he liked or had he just given up to his parents' wishes? Most likely the latter. He wanted to grab the prodigious shooter by the collar of his white shirt and tell him to grow a pair and take the risk of finding his own happiness, but he realized it would be hypocritical coming from someone who couldn't even escape an abusive relationship, so he kept that thought to himself.

"Well, many couples that get married through an arrangement manage grow fond of each other with time, isn't it? I'm sure it will be the same with you two, I have no doubts about it."

"You're such a sweetheart, truly. I can't fathom how Shin-chan would let go of such a wonderful friend like you. It's so lucky that you guys have reconnected, isn't it?"

That was so unintentionally unfunny Takao thought he would cry.

* * *

Takao was about to come up with an excuse to avoid an encore of last week's horrible car drive with Midorima, but before he could open his mouth, the green-haired doctor was already bossing him around and shoving him into the car. He wasn't quite sure of how it happened, to be honest.

After they'd dropped Kanako off at her place, Midorima drove in silence for about ten minutes before stopping the car in a random location.

"Are you okay?"

The question took him off-guard. Where did that even come from? Takao dreaded to think Midorima had noticed his limp, or maybe even one of the cuts and bruises from Toujiro's latest visit. He had a particularly nasty gash that was just barely covered by the collar of his jacket and he had no way of making an excuse of it. And he couldn't tell Shin-chan that Toujiro had thought it would be exciting to hold a knife to his throat while he forced himself on him.

"I'm fine, why do you ask?"

Midorima obviously wasn't buying that.

"You could barely walk today. Your clothes are too heavy for this time of the year too. You're hiding something, aren't you?"

Takao's heart skipped a beat. Recently, every time Toujiro assaulted him, a part of his mind would wander and start hoping Shin-chan would come to save him. Like a knight in a shining armor, he'd blast through the door, lift him in his arms and carry him to safety on his shiny white horse. He'd be warm and happy, back in the embrace of the man he loved, where he belonged. But Toujiro would pull him by the hair and force him to look at himself in the mirror "see how disgusting you are" and he realized he didn't want Shin-chan to see him humiliated and defiled like that. Things were bad enough already, the best he could hope for was that he wouldn't have to meet Shin-chan again after the wedding and his life would recover some semblance of normalcy.

"It's nothing, I crashed my bike yesterday and my legs hurt like a bitch, but it's nothing serious." Midorima seemed utterly unconvinced. He probably knew Takao didn't even own a bicycle, but he was done with this argument. "Say, _Midorima_, can't we just get this charade over with? None of us likes the situation, is it really necessary to make ourselves more miserable like this? Just let me get off the car already, Kanako-san will never know."

Through the corner of his eye, Takao noticed Midorima flinch, as if he'd been physically hurt by Takao's rejection.

* * *

Midorima wasn't really sure of what had hurt more: that Takao was lying to him so shamelessly, or that this was the first time he called him by his last name only. This was their first attempt at a conversation (aside from that time Takao asked him about the wedding date), and it stung more than he expected it to.

He remembered that when they first met he would get so annoyed when Takao called him 'Shin-chan',but as time passed and their friendship evolved into something else, the nickname had become so dear to him his heart tingled when he heard it. It had grown to be something precious they shared, it belonged only to them. He hated it when Kanako started to call him like that too. It was as if she tarnished something that was sacred to him.

He didn't speak another word and kept driving. Just like the previous time, having this moment alone with Takao had somehow given him faint hopes that they could talk things out, figure out what had gone wrong between them. But the coldness in Takao's clear eyes seemed to be telling him to not even bother. And still, every now and then, he felt the words trying to force their way out of his mouth: _Why did you leave me? I miss you. I'm sorry. I still love you. I love you._ He had to bite his lip to keep them from spilling out.

He stopped the car in front of Takao's building. Before the shorter man could get out of the car, he held him by the wrist and looked him firmly in the eyes.

_I love you._

The silence was tense. Midorima thought his heart was pounding so loudly he might go deaf.

"If you need anything you'll tell me, right?"

They both seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. Or maybe disappointment. He couldn't really tell.

Takao forced a half smirk on his face. "Yeah, sure" he said dismissively, getting off of the vehicle without saying goodbye. When the car disappeared into the distance, he touched his wrist tentatively, feeling the lingering warmth of Shin-chan's hand. If only he could have frozen that moment…

He turned around and saw light coming from his apartment's window. The faint joy that Midorima's touch had given him was quickly replaced by a grim smirk.

**To be continued**

Before I get to the notes **there's some serious thoughts I wanted to run through you guys**. I'm currently doing research to write my dissertation in hopes that I can get my college degree in less than a year. Thing is most if not all of the books I need are not published in my country so I'll have to import them and that's expensive. My financial situation is dire to say the least, if I didn't live with my mom I'd be in the streets, but I can't ask her to pay for my school stuff when each book is at 40 bucks if I'm lucky. I do some freelance translation work and occasionally tutor high school kids, but job offers aren't raining at my door and I'm going through a particularly dry period.

The above being said, I'd been thinking about setting a account as a fanfiction writer (because that's kind of the only creative thing I'm capable of). is a site where you can make small donations to independent content creators to show your support or appreciation of their work. I've never liked the idea of monetizing my fanfiction work because the characters don't belong to me, but I'm kind of desperate here. So I wanted to ask **you** the readers what you think about this. It wouldn't mean you'd have to pay to read my stories, that's something I'd never do, but more like, you guys could choose to support me if you think my stories are good enough. I'd have to come up with some perks for patrons (send me a prompt/ship and I'll write it for you or smth), I'm open to suggestions because I'm bad at coming up with that kind of stuff. Of course if you guys think I shouldn't do it, I won't press the issue. Just really want to hear your thoughts about it.

Back to the chapter, when I wrote this, the 50 Shades craze was in full boom and I ran across many write-ups describing the abusive aspects of the main relationship and how some readers found they mimicked their own real experiences with abuse, and I used it as an inspiration, especially to portray how Touji manipulates Takao and brain-washes him into believing he's all those horrible things he says. If anyone feels like I'm making an offensive portrayal of abuse, please let me know, I take this whole thing very seriously and if anything I wrote sounds ignorant I'll fix it.

Anyway, thanks for reading, as always I appreciate any comment and thanks for everyone who's faved and reviewed, you guys brighten my days.


	6. I can put a jacket on

**Note: **So I finally set up a campaign. Link is on profile. Will be eternally grateful to anyone who supports.

**Chapter 5**

**I can put a jacket on**

Takao didn't hear from Midorima or Toujiro for a whole month. Kanako and her bridesmaids had gone to America to buy their dresses, and they would spend all of June there, escaping from Japan's rainy season, take a detour to Vegas and hold an anticipated bridal shower. Kanako had actually invited him to join them, but he'd refused saying he couldn't skip a full month of work. Meanwhile, Toujiro had gone back to Uji on a business trip. Takao's life seemed almost normal for a good while.

If anything, this whole experience had helped him appreciate the simple beauties in life. His ordinary job in Aida Kagetora's gymnasium, playing streetball on weekends, coaching elementary school kids, cooking his own meals, hanging out with his friends, reading a good book and studying to get his masters in Sports Education all seemed more fulfilling than they'd ever been. He'd never been so happy to wake up alone in his bed after a full night's sleep and with no ache or pain anywhere in his body. The scars from Toujiro's last visit had almost faded away too.

It made him realize he couldn't continue like this. Toujiro was never going to stop hurting him. If he put his mind to it, he should've realized it sooner. He'd always seemed a little bit too possessive, even before he turned violent, and he'd never told him a single gentle word. He'd never said he loved him –though in retrospect, Takao hadn't either-. Most of their dates had consisted of having expensive dinner as a prelude of Toujiro's favorite brand of rough sex, and whenever their eyes met, the only thing he saw was raw hunger, like a predator staring down at his prey. He remembered how Shin-chan used to look at him, pure love pouring out of his emerald eyes, and how that made his heart race. He'd probably been too blinded by the excitement of a new adventure to notice the signs before, but now he could tell that Toujiro had never seen him as anything more than a toy.

He made up his mind. He'd move out of this place, disappear from the radar for a little bit, give that man time to find himself a new toy and go back to his life. Maybe try to find real love somewhere else. He'd have to wait until the wedding had passed, and then he'd throw away his phone, maybe even find a new job or change cities so Toujiro couldn't find him. He saw hope over the horizon. Just three more months and he'd finally be free.

* * *

He got a call from Kanako on July 6th.

"Hi, Kazu-chan. Long time no see! How're you doing?"

He'd kind of hoped she wouldn't call anymore, although he knew the chances of that happening were exactly zero.

"I don't know if you're aware of it, but tomorrow…"

…_is Shin-chan's birthday_. Of course he knew. He could never forget such a special date. The last time they'd been together for Shin-chan's birthday, they'd gone to the local shrine to hang their wishes from the bamboo tree. He'd even convinced Shin-chan to wear a yukata, and he looked so manly and handsome in it Takao had wanted to ravish him.

"_I wished that I can be with Shin-chan forever."_ He'd said with a playful grin on his face, and Shin-chan had blushed. "_What about you?_"

"_It's none of your business_." Was the reply, and the green-haired boy had blushed redder still. But when he wasn't looking, Takao peeked at the slit of paper (it was unmistakable, with Shin-chan's perfect calligraphy) and read: _'I wish that I can make Takao happy_.'

It was the happiest moment of Takao's entire life.

"…tomorrow is our appointment with the tailor for Shin-chan's suit. Since it's bad luck that the bride sees the groom's suit before the wedding, will you come and help him? Without you, he'll want to wear one of those old-fashioned kimonos."

_But Shin-chan looks so handsome in a kimono. If you're going to marry him, you should know that much at least._

"What about his birthday? You're not doing anything?" he almost regretted saying it.

"Shin-chan's birthday? Is it close? Now that I think about it, he's never mentioned it. Wow, that' so weird; we're getting married so soon and I don't even know when his birthday is."

His voice got caught in his throat. He didn't want to hate Kanako. She was smart, ambitious, beautiful, strong-willed and very kind. It wasn't her fault that things had gone badly between him and Shin-chan all those years ago. But she didn't know anything about Shin-chan, and cared so little about him and Takao couldn't stand that at all. Even if the indifference was mutual, he just didn't want to imagine his beloved Shin-chan tied down to a loveless marriage to please his father. It made him sad, and at the same time, reminded him of why he'd decided to break up seven years ago. It had been his one-sided decision, so he had no right to comment on Shin-chan's life choices, but it hurt to see how little he had changed over the years.

It was with reluctance that he showed up to their meeting spot next morning. Toujiro was still in Uji, so it was the first time he didn't have to hide any pain or limp in front of Midorima, and that was great. Kanako had already chosen a specific shop to get the suit made, so they wouldn't be jumping from shop to shop for twelve hours, which was a relief as well.

"Alright Kazu-chan, I'll leave him in your hands. Make him look handsome so all my friends will be jealous, please."

Kanako had a serious talent for being inadvertently cruel.

"Alright. None of us likes the situation, so let's try to cooperate to get it done quickly and please Kanako-san, shall we, Midorima?" the surname still felt alien on his tongue, as did using such a cold and distant tone with him.

The green-haired man nodded. "I don't wear formal western suits often, and it appears I have a bad taste for western clothing, so I'll trust your judgment on it."

Takao almost chuckled. He remembered the first time he went out with Shin-chan and saw him out of the school uniform, he was appalled at the weird color and pattern combinations he seemed to favor. Further dates just confirmed the fact that Midorima just had no sense of fashion, but Takao had found that cute in its own way.

"Well, let's go inside so they can take your measures and we'll work from there."

* * *

The store clerk was a tiny old man that reminded him of a mouse. He circled around him measuring every inch of his body against his tape and Midorima really had to wonder what he intended to do with all those numbers. "Waist 99 centimeters" he would say, and Takao would hum and scratch his chin. The man measured the length and width of his legs and arms, the circumference of his neck, the distance between his shoulder and elbow, elbow and wrist, wrist and thumb, the line of his chest, the distance from one shoulder to another, and at some point he started to get dizzy.

"May I bring you a catalog to show the different designs we can offer you?" the mousy old man offered when he was done measuring Midorima, who felt almost violated, and Takao nodded agreeably.

"What does he even need all those measurements for?" Midorima snapped once the man was gone, still feeling a little jumpy after having the man grope him all over.

"Don't be so difficult, he needs very precise measurements so the suit will fit you like a glove. They need to know all your body shapes and sizes to make them stand out in the best way. Seriously, Sh-Midorima, this is basic stuff, how come you don't know this?"

The green-haired doctor allowed himself a small smile when he realized he was able to speak to Takao normally. It was almost as if things could go back to how they used to be. Maybe he couldn't have Takao's heart back, but perhaps their friendship was not completely beyond repair, and that gave him just a tiny bit of hope.

The clerk came back with a large book with photographs of men in formal suits. The man would show them each picture and explain things about why this jacket was a good option or not. Takao would occasionally "oh" or "aaah" but to Midorima they all looked the same and it was all just massively confusing.

"Excuse me, could I see a sample of this one from Vera Wang, that looks nice… the Ralph Lauren could work… oh, I don't really fancy peak lapels, but you said this Joseph Abboud would look good on him? I'm sorry, I know that's a lot, I just want to make sure I get him the best, the bride wouldn't be happy if I can't get the groom in a decent suit… Yes just the jackets, please."

Midorima tried to go over that sentence half a dozen times and still couldn't understand anything about it.

"Since when did you become an expert on menswear?" he asked incredulously

Takao chuckled. "Oh, I'm not an expert, you're just completely clueless on how to dress yourself. I have the holy mission of making you look gorgeous for your wedding, and that's exactly what I'm going to do."

The clerk came back with the three jackets they'd asked for and Takao asked to be left alone so they could try them on. Midorima climbed on top of a small wooden pedestal in front of a mirror and held the first jacket. It was solid black and looked a little long. It looked like the classic wedding suit, and he really wondered why it was necessary to try on more than one when this one already looked decent enough.

Takao took the jacket away and circled around him, then climbed on the pedestal behind him. A chill went up Midorima's spine. The pedestal wasn't that big, so their bodies were barely inches apart.

"Arm, please?" Takao said, clearing his throat, apparently uncomfortable with their position too.

"I-I can put a jacket on by myself." He tried, still extending his right arm.

"This is an expensive designer jacket, I won't have you wrinkling it." The hawk eye breathed as he slid the sleeve over. Midorima could feel the ghost of Takao's hands going over his arm to pull the sleeve on, then around his back to fit the jacket over his shoulders and lastly on his left arm. His hands then slid around his neck to fix the collar and lapels, and once again down his back to straighten the fabric. His breathe hitched when the raven-haired man's slim arms circled around his waist to button up the jacket, his back was now touching the shorter man's chest. His fingers seemed to linger on top of the last button for just a second too long and time seemed to freeze in that instant.

Takao got off the pedestal to stand in front of him and scrutinized him from head to toe.

"Nope, not gonna work after all. That black is too harsh, it's drowning you. The shoulders are too small, you won't be able to move freely and your arms look thick rather than strong. Take it off, we'll try something else."

Midorima sighed. He didn't understand anything. Stiff shoulders? Thick arms? How could a color "drown" you? But he didn't know how to argue either and his heart was a little unstable after all that close proximity, so he just watched as Takao walked to the coat hanger, mumbling about getting something softer.

The second jacket had three buttons instead of just two, which meant it took Takao a few more seconds to button it up. For a short instant, Midorima contemplated about giving in to the embrace he had yearned for so long, but the instant was over and Takao pulled away once again as if nothing had happened.

"Oh no, three buttons looks terrible on you. This isn't doing anything for your waist, get it off now, it's offending my eyes."

The giant would've said that maybe as the groom-to-be he should have some say in his wedding suit, but he didn't care about what he would wear and he wanted to relish in every second he got to spend with Takao like this. For all he cared, it'd be better if Takao made him try on a hundred jackets. It would be hypocritical to say he didn't like the way the shorter man touched him to put the jackets on, even if that made him a cheater in mind.

The last jacket was of a dark gray color, and Midorima wondered if that was what Takao meant when he said that the pitch black was too strong. With each jacket, the raven-haired man's embrace seemed to linger a little bit longer, although whether he was doing it consciously, Midorima couldn't tell.

"Now that's what I'm talking about. This cut hugs your waist so nicely and it makes you look manly and dependable, but not rough, and strong but not dangerous… uhm… I'm just not convinced by this color, it's too bland…" he mused before walking out of the dressing room and calling the mousy clerk.

Midorima didn't know how he felt when he heard Takao talk like that. There was a glint in his eyes, reminiscent of the affection from the past, but his voice was cold and distant, and the way he acted seemed as if he was already embracing his role as the "best man".

The old man came back soon with another jacket. This one was certainly different from the previous three, and even Midorima could tell because instead of the dark palette that seemed customary for the occasion, this one was a clear ivory color that seemed to gleam just a little bit.

"Are you sure about this, mister? This is a difficult color to wear, and not so traditional."

"Don't worry, I think it'll work. If it doesn't, we'll try something else, we still have plenty of time."

Once again, Takao climbed on the pedestal to help him put the jacket on, and when he hugged him to do the buttons, there was no doubt that he was purposefully lingering even longer than before. When he climbed off and looked at Midorima, his clear eyes widened and he seemed to be caught out of breath.

"Is it bad? Should I take it off?" Midorima offered, since Takao seemed to be having trouble finding words.

The shorter man shook his head and flailed his arms a little bit too effusively. "No, no, no, not at all. Look at yourself, for crying out loud. You look perfect."

* * *

Takao had to bite his lip to keep from spilling more embarrassing words, but damn it was hard. Shin-chan looked beautiful, magnificent even. The shape of the jacket accentuated Midorima's slim waist and broad shoulders. He looked tall and mature, the kind of man you would want holding you in his arms for the rest of your life. The satin fabric was soft and light, Shin-chan shouldn't be uncomfortable even if he had to wear it all day long. The ivory color gave him a special radiance and made his gorgeous eyes stand out like real emeralds. He was overwhelmed by the sight, his heart was beating so fast he feared it might burst.

"Seriously, look at yourself. That cut is perfect, you look very handsome. Once you get it tailored it'll be even better. And that color really brings your eyes out. Kanako-san's friends will all be very jealous of her."

_As am I._

"Did you say something just now, Takao?"

He bit his tongue. He needed to keep the words from spilling any further and risk putting them both in an awkward position. "Nothing. I was just thinking whether to order a black shirt or a white one, what do you think? White is more wedding-like, but I think the black one would make it edgier and more elegant."

Midorima was looking at himself in the mirror, and clearly had no clue of what Takao meant at all. At least he seemed slightly pleased with the sight that met him.

"Do whatever you think is best. You clearly have a better eye for these things, I trust you'll make the most appropriate decision."

_I don't think I can be a fair judge though. I'm not really sure if I want you to be this beautiful for her._

* * *

After they'd made the order and been told to come back in two weeks to pick up the tailored suit, they received a call from Kanako asking how they were doing. Midorima told her that everything was decided already and hung up without any more idle chat. Then he turned to Takao and pushed his glasses up his nose, like he did when he was nervous.

"Would you like to have something to eat? My treat. I'll drive you home later."

Takao knew he should refuse the offer. His body and tongue had already betrayed him more than a handful of times when Shin-chan was trying the jackets on. But the rational side of him decided to go on vacation, so instead he smiled and said yes.

They went to a local family restaurant that Shin-chan liked because they served cool _shiruko_ during the summer. Some things never changed. They sat near the window, so their table was pleasantly lit by the sun and waited for their food in comfortable silence, completely different to the heavy atmosphere of their previous meetings.

It was Shin-chan who broke the silence once their drinks had arrived.

"I never asked you what you're doing now. You were majoring in Sports Education, right?"

Takao noticed Shin-chan had been less reluctant to meet his eyes today. Maybe their friendship was still salvageable? Maybe if they kept this going, he would eventually be able to tell him about everything that was going on. Maybe Shin-chan would be able to save him… He shook his head. Going back to "just friends" had always been out of the question, that was the exact reason he'd cut off all communications in the first place. They weren't even friends properly right now and he could barely hold back his feelings. No, he'd already made up his mind. No white knight would save him, he'd save himself. Shin-chan was to be married, and he was going to see this wedding through before starting his life anew.

"Yeah, I'm taking a Master's degree now. And I've been working in a gym and coaching a mini basket team in my days off. I also have my own team, we've been doing great in the local tournament."

Midorima smiled softly and Takao's heart melted. Shin-chan shouldn't be able to do this to him after all these years, but here he was, proving he could. "I'm glad to hear that. You've always been skilled at making strategies and have a good eye to work through any player's weaknesses, any professional team would be lucky to have you."

Takao knew he meant every word and it made him all fuzzy inside. Why was he letting him get married to a girl he didn't love? Why did they break up in the first place? It all seemed so insignificant now.

Shin-chan's phone buzzed and he picked it up to see a text message on the screen. He sighed. "Forgive me, I'll have to excuse myself from lunch. I forgot my father wanted me to attend a business meeting with Kanako's family. I'm truly sorry."

_Business, that's why._ Takao remembered as the answer to all of his questions. This was for the best, he needed to stop getting crazy hopeful ideas. Whatever they'd had was long over, they were different people with different paths now.

"It's okay, don't worry. I know you're busy. You can go ahead, I'll cancel our order."

"No, please don't do that. I'll pay for your meal; it's the least I can do to make it up to you."

Takao couldn't keep arguing, Shin-chan's kindness was too much for him to bear, so he sat and watched the man he loved rush out of the restaurant to meet his future in-laws. Because this couldn't be more fucked up than it already was.

He fished for his phone in his pocket and felt a small box tied with a silk bow. _Ah, that's right_. He'd bought Shin-chan a birthday present, but hadn't found the right moment to give it to him. In a rush of impulsiveness, he dashed out of the restaurant. It was just fortunate that Shin-chan was so much taller than the average Japanese, and that his hair was green to boot, so he didn't have a problem finding him in the crowd.

"SHIN-CHAN!" he yelled, and the green head turned to look at him, emerald eyes wide with shock. Takao realized his mistake. "I-I uhm… I just…" he fingered the box in his pocket and remembered its content: a golden chain with a small feather-shaped pendant. Oha-Asa had said a feather was Cancer's lucky item for today. "I forgot to…" no, this wasn't appropriate. Jewelry was a present for lovers, not for soon to be married, barely even friends, ex-boyfriends. Shin-chan didn't even wear jewelry, actually, what had he been thinking? He let go of the box. "I just… forgot to say happy birthday. So… Happy Birthday, Midorima."

Once again, they both seemed to let go of the breath they'd been holding. This time it was definitely disappointment.

**To be continued**

This is one of my favorite chapters, if I'm completely honest. Both of their feelings are starting to overflow and there's a lot of longing and hope and then just a lot of sadness because they can't be together. I also didn't want Takao to be a helpless victim all along, I wanted to show him try and fight for his freedom and it has to start with him deciding he's going to save himself and not stand up for this crap any longer.

If you want to look at what Shin-chan's wedding suit looks like, find me on tumblr (link on my profile). I just really like the idea of him wearing a white/ivory suit, I really think it'll bring out his eyes. All the other suits mentioned here are on the same website


	7. Wanting to hear those words

**Chapter 6**

**Wanting to hear those words**

Midorima could tell his father was upset with him on the ride back home. He wouldn't blame him. His heart was still pounding so hard he could actually hear it, and he'd gone deaf to the rest of the world. Kanako's father had addressed him repeatedly during the meeting but he hadn't been able to even understand what the Karasuma CEO wanted of him, since his brain was still buzzing with a mixture of thrill and heartache.

It felt almost stupid to be so intoxicated with delight just from being called 'Shin-chan' by Takao.

* * *

Takao had to leave the restaurant without having finished his meal. The waiter had approached him and asked if something was wrong, because he was disturbing the other customers. Well, he'd been sobbing miserably over his soup for half an hour, it was to be expected that people would be bothered. Maybe if this was a bar or if he had a private booth where he could drown his sorrows without being noticed, but out there in the broad of light, an open table in a family restaurant, it was just unacceptable.

He paid at the counter with Shin-chan's money and couldn't hold back a sniffle. It was borderline stupid to be crying so much at this late stage of the game just because Shin-chan –beautiful, loveable Shin-chan- had gotten such a lovely spark of joy in his eyes when Takao called him 'Shin-chan'. Maybe that had been his golden chance. Maybe if he'd had the balls to speak up, Shin-chan would reconsider and _choose him _this time. But no, he shook those thoughts out of his head for the umpteenth time today. Even if Shin-chan did love him –and he wanted to believe there was a decent chance of that being the case-, he wouldn't betray his father's expectations. He hadn't seven years ago, he wouldn't now.

_Three more months_. He told himself. Three more months and he would be free from this miserable commitment and have a fresh start. A new life.

When he arrived at his building, he saw a familiar black Toyota parked on the entrance. He turned on his heels to run away, but a firm hand grabbed him by the wrist.

"Oh? Where exactly do you think you're going, Kazu?" Toujiro sneered "Isn't that rude, running away after I went through the trouble of visiting you, even though I'm so tired from my trip."

His body froze with fear. Even if Shin-chan hadn't driven him home, Toujiro would still come up with an excuse to punish him. He was finally getting used to the lack of pain. _No. No. No!_

"Did you miss me, my little whore? I bet you've been whoring yourself out while I'm gone, your little fuckhole wouldn't be satisfied otherwise."

He wanted to resist. He wouldn't let this happen, not again. He'd already decided to save himself and fix everything that had gone wrong with his life. But Toujiro was taller and stronger, and no matter how hard he tried to run, he couldn't.

"Why are you so scared, huh, Kazu? I'm about to fill your cunt until you bleed, isn't that what you like? You should be more appreciative of my generosity". Toujiro twisted his arm and his shoulder made a nasty crack.

_Please not the tendon. Please, please, PLEASE not the tendon. Don't let him take my basketball too._ He pleaded as he was thrown into the car.

"By the way, I noticed you've been searching for a new apartment? Trying to run away, you ungrateful slut? Don't worry, I'll leave my mark all over your cock-loving self so I'll always be able to find you."

* * *

The doorbell rang.

"Tetsu, could you get the door? My hands are full over here."

The shadow man did as he was asked. His blue eyes widened in shock and horror when he opened the door to find a short raven-haired man barely holding himself upright, his face swollen and full of cuts and bruises, his clothes torn and tattered. What could be seen of his body was also splashed with wounds, and it was easy to figure out that the parts that were clothed wouldn't look too different.

"Takao-kun, wha-?!" his question was cut short when the former Point Guard collapsed on top of him. "Kagami-kun! Kagami-kun, come here quickly!"

* * *

Takao woke up with a raging headache and a terribly familiar soreness all over his body. He found himself lying on a bed that wasn't his own. He didn't remember where he was. His last memory was of Toujiro kicking him out of the car in a vaguely familiar neighborhood, near a vaguely familiar building. Someone he knew and probably trusted lived here, but for the life of him he couldn't recall who it was.

"Hello?" he called, trying to get up. His past experiences with Toujiro should've taught him to be wiser than that. A jolt of pain shot up his spine and he crashed on the floor, howling.

"Takao-kun! Are you alright?"

The Point Guard recognized the baby-blue hair and unusually flustered face. Damn, so he'd ended up in Kuroko's place. This could be bad, that guy was way too sharp for his own good.

The phantom man helped him to get back on the bed and kneeled next to it, concern written clearly all over his face. "Why am I here?" he asked, his voice hoarse, probably from screaming.

"That's what we'd like to know. You just collapsed on our doorstep looking like you were run over by a train." Kagami chimed in, carrying a tray with food.

Kuroko shot him a deadly glare before turning back to Takao. "Our neighbor is a doctor, we had him check you up to make sure you weren't in more peril. He said you were lucky that none of your injuries was too deep, or you could've lost a lot of blood." He explained and it was just kind of odd to see deadpan extraordinaire Kuroko showing so much emotion on his face.

"You… you didn't tell Shin-chan, did you?" he stuttered. The idea of having to explain this to Shin-chan terrified him.

The blue-haired man sighed, clearly not pleased. "Against my better judgment, no, I didn't call Midorima-kun. I imagined you wouldn't want me to."

"But we _will_ call your parents if you don't tell us what the fuck happened." Kagami added as he handed the tray to Takao. "You need to eat, you've been out of it for two days."

Takao shivered. He didn't want to tell them the truth. He didn't want to talk about it, period. It was his own blindness that had gotten him here, and he feared he would start crying if het let it all out. "Some thugs wanted my wallet and I got caught up in a nasty fight, that's it."

Of course it was naïve to think Kuroko would buy that excuse. "Takao-kun…" he seemed to be deeply troubled with what he wanted to say. "When we found you… your clothes were almost destroyed and… the doctor said that some of your injuries… it's not something you would get from a simple robbery."

Judging by how the phantom man avoided his eyes and the way he seemed to be so carefully picking his words, Takao understood exactly what he meant.

"I won't force you to talk about it if you're not ready, but if you ever need someone to listen…"

Takao smiled. Kuroko's offer and the implied comfort and understanding made him feel just a little bit warmer.

"Thanks guys, really. I'm sorry I caused so much trouble. If I can have a bath I'll be able to go back home today."

Kagami glared at him with fiery eyes. "Sorry buddy, that's one thing we're not letting you do. You're staying here until your wounds heal, and that's final."

Kuroko cleared his throat. "The doctor said it would be best if you didn't move around a lot. We've already called Kagetora-san to tell him you won't be going to work for a while. We never use this bedroom anyway, you'll be a lot safer here."

He shouldn't be surprised that a clever and keenly observant man like Kuroko understood the situation so well. The underlying implication had been clear: _Your place is not safe._

* * *

It took three more days to be able to walk on his own again, but there wasn't much he could do with his immobilized shoulder. Toujiro had dislocated it, and the swelling would take a few more days to heal. It was just lucky that it wasn't broken, and that it wasn't his dominant arm either, because otherwise he wouldn't even be able to eat. He couldn't go out in the open either, the bruises on his face had yet to fade away and he looked utterly hideous.

He felt a little bit guilty for taking advantage of Kuroko's hospitality, but life with Seirin's former light-and-shadow duo was doing wonders for him. For starters, Kagami's cooking skills were no joke, and as days passed, he started to dread having to go back to his own less-than-proficient self-made meals.

Watching the couple also made him all fuzzy and warm inside. They were extremely cute and domestic, he could barely hold back the need to 'awww' every time Kuroko stole a kiss from Kagami, making the red-head blush all the way to the tips of his ears.

"You guys've been together for so long and you still act like newlyweds. I swear I'll get cavities just from watching you." He'd said casually over dinner one day.

Kagami, as was to be expected, blushed a dark shade of red and stuffed his mouth with food to cover his embarrassment. Kuroko, on the other hand, let go of his chopsticks and answered in his typical deadpan tone "We got married two years ago, so I don't think we qualify as newlyweds anymore."

Takao almost choked on his food. "Married? When? How?!"

Kagami was now hiding his face behind his hands, and it was then that Takao noticed the golden band on his ring finger. He shifted his eyes to Kuroko's paler, smaller hands to find a matching one there.

"It was a little bit spontaneous if I may say so. We went to America because Kagami-kun's parents wanted to meet me. I realized it was a good opportunity so I asked for their permission to marry Kagami-kun. I think they weren't really expecting it, but they accepted anyway." Kuroko stated matter-of-factly.

Takao chuckled, imagining Kagami's parents welcoming their child –now a grown man- back after many years apart, and Kuroko, polite and proper to a fault, going down on his knees and asking if he could have their son's hand in marriage. "Didn't Kagami die from embarrassment, though? I can only imagine him like a blushing bride in that scenario."

A faint smile appeared on Kuroko's lips. "Oh, he did. His face was almost as red as his hair. He looked most adorable. I couldn't convince him to wear a wedding dress, though, that would've been lovely."

"Oi, Tetsu, you asshole, stop talking about that!" Kagami –who had long stopped enjoying this conversation- barked, getting up –with the excuse of feeding Nigou- so he wouldn't have to listen to them anymore.

The raven-haired man smiled. "Well, I guess congratulations are in order then, even if a little belated. I wish you guys many years of happiness."

"Thank you, Takao-kun, you are very kind."

They fell into a pleasant silence while waiting for Kagami to bring over the dessert.

_Marriage, huh?_ His eyes stung a little.

* * *

A few days later, his phone buzzed and Midorima's name showed up on the screen. Kanako had insisted they traded contact information now that he was bound to be his best man. He hesitated to answer, took a deep breath, and hoped his voice wouldn't betray him.

"Hey, Midorima, what's up?"

He noticed Kuroko sitting nearby and wondered if the phantom man would be listening to the conversation.

"_Good morning, Takao…I… I just received a call from the tailor. He said we can go to pick up the suit tomorrow so I… was wondering if you have time to come with me… J-just to make sure everything's in order, I wouldn't be able to notice if anything was amiss._"

Beautiful, adorable tsundere Shin-chan. Was he doing it on purpose to break his heart, Takao wondered? Truth be told, he didn't want to meet him now. His injuries were not completely healed, and with his face so beat up, questions were bound to arise. But he couldn't say 'no' when Shin-chan had asked him so nicely, with that slight but still noticeable quiver in his deep voice.

"Sure. I'll meet you there at ten."

When he cut off the call, he noticed Kuroko was standing behind him and looking at him with deep concern in his sapphire eyes. He didn't say a word, but gently placed his small hand on Takao's arm, and that was enough to break him.

Before he knew what happened, he was crying on Kuroko's lap and telling him even the smallest and most horrible details of how everything had gone wrong in his life and how he couldn't even escape from Toujiro or Shin-chan's marriage, and how he wondered if he might not be better off dying already.

"Oi, man, that's just sick." Kagami interfered once he had finished talking. "You can't leave it like this, you should go to the cops or something."

Takao sighed mirthlessly. "That'd be the word of a rich and powerful businessman with a long family tradition versus a filthy commoner." Nigou sat next to him and started licking his fingertips, as if the dog could somehow understand what was happening and wanted to comfort him.

Kuroko looked like he wanted to say something, but he just sighed. "Kagami-kun is right, you can't just let this be; there must be something we can do about it."

"Come on, man, look at yourself! You're walking proof of what that psycho has done to you. If you don't say anything, it's just going to keep getting worse."

Takao didn't miss the implication there, probably because the thought had crossed his mind more than once. Since Shin-chan had crashed back into his life, every time Toujiro visited him, he wondered if this would be the day in which he'd lose control and kill him, if maybe today the knife would finally slash his throat open, or whether he'd die from pain because it seemed impossible to keep on living when everything hurt so damn much.

"I know you don't want to, but you should talk to Midorima-kun about this, be honest with him. It may not be too late to mend things up, and his family is very important in the city, he would definitely find a way to help you with that horrible man. It's no secret that he doesn't want to marry Karasuma-san either. You could try to give yourselves a second chance…"

A single tear ran down his cheek before he could hold it back. "I could never do that to him. The relationships with the Tozai and Karasuma companies are important for his family. He's tried so hard to please his parents, I would never forgive myself if I put him in a position that jeopardized everything he's done for them." He didn't want to say that he was certain Midorima wouldn't choose him if he put him in such a position. "And I'm already dirty and repulsive, second-hand defective merchandise. He deserves better."

Kuroko grabbed his face with both hands and forced him to meet his blue eyes that were afire with anger. He'd never seen the shadow man so infuriated and it was kind of scary. He'd come to associate anger with being beat up by Toujiro, and he had to take deep breaths to remind himself that Kuroko would never do such a thing.

"Takao-kun, you will not talk about yourself like that ever again." The shorter man stated firmly. "Everything that man ever said to you were lies, and you must not think less of yourself because of what he did to you. It was not your fault and you did not deserve it. We will definitely see that he pays for what he did. You're a good man, Takao-kun; kind and selfless, and I know you care about Midorima-kun more than anyone in the world. You deserve to be happy."

He wanted to smile and say how grateful he was for Kuroko's kindness, but all he could do was sob and sniffle and cry like a baby, burying his face in Kuroko's chest because he'd been wanting to hear those words from someone, _anyone_, for so long; it was almost hard to believe they were true after so much pain and fear and he felt so blessed to have friends that could pull him back to the world of light and hope. And he cried, and with every tear he felt a little bit more liberated.

**To be continued**

TAKAO MY BABY I'M SO SORRY. No crying emoji can express how bad I feel for what I'm putting you through.

To make it up to you, have some Mama!KagaKuro (they're both such moms) to comfort you my dear. Even if it was an act of KagaKuro-ex-Machina, my baby needed some light and hope in his life, so I don't care.

Thanks everyone for your support and comments, I hope you keep enjoying this story. Please let me know what you think, I'd be forever grateful for any feedback.


	8. Don't get mad at me

**Chapter 7**

**Don't get mad at me**

It was 9:57 in the morning. Midorima had arrived a bit earlier than they had agreed (thirty-four minutes, to be precise) and was now sitting on a bench, waiting. He knew there was something inherently wrong with being so eager to meet your ex-boyfriend to pick up your wedding suit, but he was much too preoccupied trying to conceal his eagerness to be concerned with those little details. Maybe he should've called Takao in the past two weeks, but every time he picked up the phone, he realized he didn't know what to say. The tailor's call had given him the perfect excuse to meet the raven-haired man again.

At 10:02 he saw Takao crossing the street and walking in his general direction. Their eyes met, and Midorima flinched, wondering if he was going red in the face (and he so hoped he wasn't). But as his eyes lingered on his former teammate, he noticed his casted left arm, the patch on his right cheek, his blood-shot eyes, and he was pulled out of his daydream. Before Takao could even open his mouth, Midorima had already run up to him with concern written all over his face.

"What happened to you? Are you okay? You should've told me you were injured, we could've postponed this."

Takao smiled dismissively. "Don't be ridiculous, this is nothing. It's not like I can't walk or anything, I ran into another guy during a game and dislocated my shoulder, it's alright now." He reassured as he started walking towards the tailor shop they had visited last time.

The mousy clerk that had helped them last time came to greet them and guided them to a private room where Midorima's new suit was waiting for them. The green-haired doctor was a little confused. Shouldn't they just pay for it and leave? Was something else expected of him now? He looked at Takao, hoping his expression would be enough to convey how he had no clue of what was going on. He didn't want the salesman to notice he was buying his wedding suit blindly, or that he had zero knowledge about the social cues associated with this activity.

"You should try it on." Takao luckily caught on to what was happening. "Just in case. It's important to make sure everything fits, because if something is wrong, we can have the tailor fix it on time."

Midorima nodded in understanding and took the suit to the spacious changing room, hoping he would be able to put it on. He'd worn formal suits before, but everything related to the wedding seemed a lot more complex and had a whole bunch of new rules of etiquette that were completely unknown to him. How come Takao knew so much about all of this, he couldn't begin to imagine.

He took off his jeans first and replaced them with the ivory pants. They came in no problem, but he couldn't see how he was supposed to wear a belt, since there were no loops to be seen. Would the pants hold on by themselves? They had side tabs, so maybe that was the idea. Maybe he should call Takao for help after all. It's not as if they had never seen each other naked (_when we were teammates and best friends, and lovers_, his brain reminded him, and he realized he'd have to figure this thing out by himself). Alright, the pants seemed to work without a belt, so he could now move on to the shirt. Takao had chosen the pure black shirt, and at least putting that on wasn't such a big challenge. He looked at himself in the mirror and was mildly pleased with what he saw. He shouldn't be surprised to know that Takao truly had a gifted eye for clothing.

There was an ivory necktie and an ivory bowtie there too, but he couldn't wear them both at the same time, so he felt a little bit at a loss on that. He decided to try the bowtie first since he was a little bit clumsy with the necktie. Before he could put on the jacket, though, he found another piece that looked like a wide ivory colored belt with plates and he had no clue of what it was or how to wear it. He frowned in annoyance and decided to just put the jacket on and ask Takao about it. Why did everything have to be so difficult? If Kanako would just let him wear a kimono he wouldn't have to suffer the public humiliation of admitting that he had no clue of what that sash-like item was.

"Do you need any help?" Takao's voice came from outside the dressing room.

He slid the curtain open and came out of the room. "I think I can handle this by myself, thank you." He replied, a little bit too crudely. He was growing annoyed with how cumbersome this ordeal was, and that Takao (correctly) assumed he was completely lost, ticked him off to no end.

He realized there was no response, and he turned to look at Takao, who was now staring at him in awe, which made him feel awfully self-conscious. The raven-haired man was frozen on his spot, his cheeks a light shade of pink and his mouth hanging slightly agape. He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and looked away, hiding his embarrassment. "Why are you looking at me like that? Is it not good after all?"

That seemed to snap Takao back into reality. "Why would you even think that? I know you're fashion blind, but for Christ's sake… hey, wait, I'd ordered a cummerbund, where is it?"

He ordered a _what_? Midorima had never even heard that word. It struck him after a moment that maybe he was talking about the mysterious item he'd wondered about earlier so he raised it in front of the shorter man's face, hoping he would get the hint and not force him to say he didn't know what it was in front of the salesman.

"Oh, you need help adjusting that, of course. Take off the jacket, will you?"

Turns out this thing wasn't too different from a formal obi, and Takao was done with it quickly (although with his casted arm he had required a little of Midorima's help to get it done). He put the jacket back on as the shorter man pushed him towards the mirror.

"How do you like it, sir?" the old man whose presence Midorima had almost forgotten intervened.

"It's an amazingly perfect fit, isn't it?" Takao said enthusiastically, holding Midorima by the shoulders and smoothing the satin of the jacket. "I'm not a big fan of bowties, but the waistcoat with a necktie would be too stuffy, this really suits you the best" he turned to Midorima briefly before adding "Would you excuse us for a minute?" The mousy salesman bowed and left them alone in the private room, and it was just then that Midorima realized how close to each other they were standing.

"So… this is how it's supposed to look? I thought black suits were more customary."

Takao frowned. "Are you even looking at yourself? I told you before, black is too harsh on you. It works on the shirt because it makes the jacket stand out. And this color makes your beautiful eyes look even greener. It's a match made in heaven."

Midorima's heartrate sped up as Takao kept piling compliment over compliment. Was he even aware of what he was saying? Then again, Takao had never been one to keep his opinions to himself, he'd always been honest and straightforward, and that was one of the things Midorima had always loved about him.

"You look perfectly dreamy. If she doesn't know it already, this will make Kanako-san realize how lucky she is to have you."

Reflected on the mirror, he saw the sad and tender smile on Takao's lips. This was wrong. Why was he marrying a woman he didn't love and didn't love him? Why did he have to give up the rest of his life for the sake of a business transaction? Was it really worth it, to abandon his own happiness to fulfill his father's ambition? He suddenly felt sick.

"Takao, I…"

"Actually I...have something I wanted to tell you." Takao interrupted, his head hanging low. One of his hands was holding on to the ivory sleeve of Midorima's wedding suit, and trembling slightly. "Just… don't get mad at me for saying it, please?"

This was just like the time when Takao first confessed he loved him, back when they started their third and last year of high school.

"_Hey, Shin-chan? Can I talk to you for a second? It's kind of important."_

It was unusual to see Takao so serious, so he'd nodded and followed him to the large full-bloom cherry blossom tree in the school's backyard.

"_I know… this will sound weird but… just promise you won't hate me after I say it. Even if you don't like what I say, please promise we can still be friends."_

He'd been at a loss for words. In the two years they'd been best friends, Takao had never spoken like that, and it made him worry. Once again, he nodded in reassurance. If the boy he secretly loved was going through any sort of problem, he'd do anything in his power to help him.

"_Shin-chan I… I'm in love with you. I've actually been so for a while. I didn't want to tell you because our friendship is so precious to me and I didn't want to lose it… I… I've been afraid that you'd hate me. But I decided… I wanted you to know… I love you. I really, really love you. I love you with all my heart."_

Midorima's heart had pounded so fast and so hard he thought it might burst his ribcage open. His eyes grew watery. He'd been in love with Takao for a long time, and it had never even crossed his mind that Takao might return his feelings. He had always been way too afraid of rejection to ever voice those feelings either. He knew he ought to say something fast or the shorter boy would misunderstand, but he couldn't think of the right words to say. His first reaction had been to hold on to Takao's wrist to keep him from running away while he tried to put his thoughts in order. His eyes had met Takao's silver pair and he'd seen a mirror to his own confusion and fear and hope, and it had given him the courage to speak up.

"_But… if you love me, how can we stay friends?"_ Takao flinched and the pain of rejection flashed across his face. Midorima held on tighter. "_I mean… b-because if you love me and I-I-I l-love you then… w-we'd become a c-c-c-couple, right?_" and he'd stared straight into Takao's eyes, hoping he could convey his determination and the strength of his feelings in a way his clumsy words couldn't. Takao had gasped in disbelief and blushed every degree of the red spectrum before throwing his arms around Midorima's neck and crashing their lips together in what was probably the clumsiest kiss ever. A strong wind had blown and the cherry blossom petals whirled around them as they held each other tightly, and it had been so perfect it felt like a dream.

The way Takao looked at him now, and the serious tone in his voice reminded Midorima of that day. His heart grew hopeful, wondering if there was any chance to go back to that dream. He locked his eyes with Takao's wishing his feelings would get across like they had all those years ago.

"You know… the truth is that… I-it's been a long time but…"

_I'm sorry for everything. I miss you so much._

A part of Midorima wanted to _hear_ those words.

"I'm just… I know that… things have changed but…"

_I still love you with all my heart. I always have._

A part of Midorima wanted to _say_ those words. Maybe he should. Maybe he would.

"What I'm trying to say is…"

The door burst open. "Oh, there you are! I've been calling you for _hours_, I wanted to see the suit you chose." Kanako said cheerfully, oblivious to the raw tension in the room. "Wow, is that it? As expected of Kazu-chan, this is amazing. Eriko-chan will be _soooo_ jealous when she sees what a handsome husband I got for myself!"

Midorima looked at Takao trying to salvage the situation. It had been real, whatever it was that had been about to happen, and he didn't want to lose it. But it was too late. Takao's face was split in a broken smile and his hand had long let go of Midorima's sleeve.

He then remembered that, no matter how nice the dream, once you woke up, there was no going back to it.

**To be continued**

Happy double feature! It's MidoTaka day so of course I was going to make a special exception :D.

In this particular scenario, I'm Midorima. I have no fucking clue about anything wedding related, all of Takao's knowledge comes from Discovery Home &amp; Health wedding reality show trash and google. Also, I had never heard the word cummerbund before researching for this chapter. Also, I want these boys to kiss and magically solve all their problems already.

Thanks for reading and please let me know what you think! Come talk to me on tumblr (liamatsuoka), my askbox is forever lonely. And see you in two weeks!


	9. Anything that may go wrong

**Chapter 8**

**Anything that may go wrong**

Every time Takao thought his situation couldn't get more pathetic, it did. It was just to be expected that when he finally got the resolve to tell Shin-chan that he still loved him and wanted him back, his confession would be interrupted by Shin-chan's soon-to-be wife. If that was not a sign from fate, he didn't know what it was. And as if he was trying to oneup himself in patheticness, he also feigned a phone call about a non-existent appointment in half an hour so he could have an excuse to leave the scene, which was already heart-breaking enough as it was. He didn't want Shin-chan driving him home and start asking questions about why he was living with Seirin's former light and shadow duo. Everything sucked so bad.

When he got back to Kuroko and Kagami's apartment, he found the two lovebirds having lunch together and chatting-bickering as they usually did. He felt a surge of jealousy crawling up his spine. He wanted what they had so much and he hated them for rubbing it on his face. Then he felt disgusting for thinking like that about the friends who saved him and gave him a home and comforted him when he'd hit rock bottom. This just kept getting worse and worse.

"Oh, welcome home, Takao-kun. We didn't know you were coming for lunch, we would've waited for you." Kuroko said, a little startled. Kagami got up from his chair and started towards the kitchen, with the clear intention of serving a plate for him, but he was really not feeling up for it.

"Don't worry, guys, I'm not really hungry." He reassured them. The only thing he wanted right now was to lock himself in his (borrowed) room and cry himself to sleep.

Kuroko, of course, had seen straight through him, and was now piercing him with his concerned blue eyes. "Did you talk to Midorima-kun?" he asked, tentatively and Takao's breath got caught in his throat.

Still heading towards the guestroom, he smiled dismissively. "Well, you know what they say: anything that may go wrong, will definitely go wrong." He bit his lip as he remembered how beautiful Shin-chan looked in the ivory suit, and the lovely blush that had spread over his pale cheeks when Takao told him how perfect he looked, and how his emerald eyes sparkled with hope when he'd been about to confess. He'd looked as if he'd wanted to hear the words he had tried to say, but alas, fate had decided that those words would never be spoken. "I'm sorry, guys, I don't feel really well right now. I just need to be alone for a while, sorry."

Kuroko was too stunned to say anything else and just let Takao go back to his room.

"Do you think Midorima rejected him, after all?" Kagami asked, looking concerned.

Sometimes, the phantom man wondered how it would feel to be so blissfully unaware of other people's feelings. But if he had known, they would've never even started dating, so maybe remaining estranged from such obliviousness was a good thing. Much as he loved Kagami-kun, the man was extremely bad at understanding any situation that involved others' emotions.

"There's not a single chance of that being the case." He said as he sipped on his tea. "That both of them want to get back together is not even up to the question." It was not a mystery (even Kagami-kun knew it) that Midorima was socially awkward and extremely unapproachable. Takao-kun had probably been his closest friend, and after they got together, everyone who knew him could tell that the he had never been happier. Kuroko still remembered the first time he met Midorima after Takao broke up with him. He'd looked defeated, completely devoid of any hope or desire, and he'd been on the verge of tears when Kuroko asked what had happened.

"Midorima-kun's family is very traditional, and his parents have many expectations of him as their eldest son. He has always been extremely loyal to those expectations, and this marriage is clearly one of them. Midorima-kun must feel that he has no choice but to go through with it if he wants to fulfill his father's desires." It was natural that Kagami wouldn't know, given how he'd lived most of his life in America, and his parents were a lot more open-minded than an old-fashioned family like Midorima's. "Remember what Takao-kun told us about why they broke up?"

"_I realized he would never choose me. He just… he'd never go against them. Not for __**us**__ at least._" Takao had said with a broken smile and his eyes already puffy from crying.

"I think Takao-kun is afraid that the same thing will happen again. Of course I don't know the details, but it's very likely that Midorima-kun said something, or that something happened that made Takao-kun doubt again. Not that I blame him, Midorima-kun has most likely given no indication of wanting to call off the engagement, that idiot." He sighed, frustrated. He'd like to talk to Midorima personally and shake some sense into him, but he believed it was a decision he had to make on his own.

Kagami ruffled his hair lovingly, which pulled him out of his broodiness. "Midorima is out of our control, so shouldn't we focus in doing something about that Tozai asshole?"

Kuroko leaned into his husband's touch. "Of course I haven't forgotten about it, but Takao-kun is right. That man is an important businessman, and without real proof there isn't much we can do now." He'd thought about calling Akashi, who had a lot of power in the business world, but he was afraid to raise a scandal that would put Takao-kun in the spotlight. He didn't want to expose his friend like that and make him the target of the media and the world's merciless inquisition. "For now we should focus on making sure Takao-kun is safe." He concluded, feeling a little defeated.

His light grabbed him by the chin and made him look up to meet his fiery eyes. "You know, it's cute how passionate you get about making your friends happy, but you shouldn't let it get to you like this. You're acting like their mom, I swear."

Kuroko frowned. "If anything, Kagami-kun would be the mom. You look much cuter in an apron than I do."

"I'd beg to differ." And he leaned in to capture his lips in a tender kiss.

* * *

A week and a half later, Takao's phone buzzed in the middle of work. He saw Kanako's name on the screen and apologized to Kagetora-san so he could go outside to answer the call. There couldn't be much left to do, right? Unless Kanako insisted on a bachelor's party, which Midorima would definitely not be interested in.

"Hey, Kazu-chan, how're you doing? I just wanted to let you know that next week Shin-chan will be performing a tea ceremony for me and my parents, to celebrate that the wedding is getting closer. My maid of honor is invited, so it goes without saying that you should come too, will you?"

Takao got a little bit dizzy just from how fast she was speaking. He'd seen Shin-chan offering a tea ceremony before –it was, after all, the family trade-. He remembered his regal look and dignified posture, how delicately he'd moved, all the thought that went on choosing the appropriate flowers and sweets for the occasion, how focused he'd been while brewing the tea, and how warm and delicious it had tasted. Shin-chan never looked more beautiful than when he was dedicating his heart and soul to the brewing and sharing of tea, which he loved so much.

"I don't think I can make it, I'm sorry. I took some time off from work and I can't afford to rest more, my boss would be angry. I'll be really busy for a while, I'm afraid." Even though that was partially true, deep down it was just an excuse. He loved watching Shin-chan doing the tea ceremony, but he was completely done with everything related to this wedding. The more he saw Shin-chan, the more stupid hopes would arise in his heart, and the more painful it was every time they were crushed. He'd show up for the rehearsals and the actual thing in October, but that was it.

He had to focus his energy, not on hopelessly pining after Shin-chan, but in putting his life back in order, finding a new place to live (much to his chagrin, he couldn't keep leeching Kuroko and Kagami's kindness forever, and watching them being so happy and cuddly was starting to be painful for his broken heart), and get away from Toujiro.

"Awwww, that's a total shame, I really wanted you to come. I've heard Shin-chan's really special with the tea ceremony, I thought you'd like to watch. I guess there's nothing I can do about that then. I'll call you to talk about the bachelor's party, yes? Shin-chan's a grump and doesn't want to talk about it at all. See you!"

Before Takao could say anything to slip out of that commitment too, Kanako hung up the phone.

He was about to put it away when it buzzed again and he answered without checking the screen. Maybe Kanako wanted to say something else about the bachelor's party.

"I'm sorry, Kanako-san, I really need to get back to work, could you call me later please?"

There was a deep chuckle on the other side of the line and Takao's blood froze. "Oho? So you're working now? There can't be that many people willing to pay for your slut hole, are there?"

Takao couldn't move. He should throw away his phone and run, but he couldn't move.

"Did you really think you could hide from me? That I wouldn't pick up on the stench of your sluttery wherever you are? I heard you're living with two other fags. One dick wasn't enough for you, was it? Don't worry, next time I see you I'll bring along some friends; you'd like that, wouldn't you?"

He was terrified. How could Toujiro know about Kuroko and Kagami? Did he know where they lived? Would he go and find him there?

"I hope you're not thinking of running back to your fag friends to hide. If they hide you from me any longer, I'll make sure to destroy them. It'll be in their best interest if you and your cunt come back to where you belong as soon as possible. Make up your mind soon, will you? You wouldn't want me to get impatient."

His knees gave out.

"P-p-p-please don't hurt them. I-i-I w-won't go back to them. Leave them alone please. Plea-"

The line died before he could finish the sentence.

**To be continued**

Ahhh there we are, more pain and suffering, I'm so sorry my dear readers and I'm so sorry Kazu my sweetheart.

Thanks for reading and hanging on to all this ruthless pain and all these horrible things Kazu is going through.

Come talk to me about my pathological need to write suffering. Ring me at liamatsuoka on tumblr.


	10. Save Me

**Chapter 9**

**Save me**

Kuroko pressed the call button for the tenth time today. Takao hadn't come back since yesterday and he wasn't picking up the phone. What should he do now? Had Takao been caught by the despicable man that had hurt him before? Should he call the police? Kagetora-san said Takao had left work as usual yesterday, but hadn't shown up this morning. Less than 24 hours missing wasn't enough time to raise a report, but Kuroko couldn't help the uneasy feeling that plagued him. The phone rang ten times before the line died.

"Maybe it's time you called Akashi. Takao could be in serious danger right now, and that guy has a lot of networks that could help us find him." Kagami suggested, even though he was obviously not happy with the idea.

The phantom man nodded in agreement. He'd pondered the possibility of calling Midorima, but he realized his friend wouldn't be able to do much right now. He dialed Akashi's personal number and heard it ring three times before it clicked.

"Akashi-kun, I-"

"_The number you have dialed is not in service."_

He shut the phone and chewed on his lip. He then browsed through his contacts to find the number of Akashi's office. Akashi had given it to him some years ago, "exclusively for a life-or-death situation", and this definitely qualified as one.

The line rang three times and clicked.

"_Akashi-sama is out of the country and won't be able to take this call. If you would like to leave a message, press number one."_

Kuroko gritted his teeth and shut the phone again, resisting the urge to fling the object away in frustration. Akashi's business trips could last months if needed. He'd have to figure out something else.

When they made it back home, they found an envelope in their mailbox. It had nothing on the outside that gave any hints about the sender, so he opened it cautiously. Inside he found a small piece of paper with a short phrase written in angry, scratchy characters and a photograph. Kuroko felt his insides turn as his worst fears came true and he had to hold on to Kagami's shirt to keep himself on his feet. He felt Kagami-kun stiffen with horror and anger, and holding him by the waist to help him stay steady.

_Stay away from my slut._

* * *

He'd been on the run for two days now. He knew he should've called Kuroko to let him know he wasn't coming back for a while, but he didn't want to risk turning Toujiro's wrath against his friends. They didn't deserve to have their happiness disrupted by his chaotic life anymore. He'd been staying in cheap manga cafés for the past two nights and he'd gotten himself a bus ticket to Nagoya, the Chukyo University had a good Sports and Health Sciences graduate program and he'd see about getting his papers transferred later. They were right in the inter-semester break, but he hoped he would be able to work something out. Once he had crossed the prefectural border, he'd call Kuroko to tell him they were in danger and that they should stay clear of him. They wouldn't take it lightly, but they wouldn't follow him all the way to Nagoya either. He'd also have to get in touch with Kagetora-san to present a formal resignation, but that too, could wait. For now, his priority was disappearing.

He'd tossed away his cellphone, fearing Toujiro may have planted a localizing chip on it, and he hadn't even gone back home to get some clothes. He didn't have time for that now. He had just received his payment for the month, so he had enough funds to live for a couple of weeks. Once he was a little bit more settled, he'd get in touch with his mother's family, who lived in the area, although how they would help him without getting endangered or how he would explain the situation, he didn't know. It was a very precarious plan, but it was better than sitting around and waiting for Toujiro to find him.

He was now waiting for the bus to arrive. He'd made reservations for the Night Bus so he could sleep the seven hours it would take to get to Nagoya. Sleep was something he needed desperately, and he was quite looking forward to it. He bought a can of shiruko –which he didn't even like- from the vending machine. Before he could snap it open, he felt a large hand on his shoulder and another one covered his mouth. He stiffened in horror.

"Well, look what I found here, a slut in the run. Did you know that making reservations online leaves a trail that is very easy to follow if you know the right people?"

His eyes widened and he wished he could slap himself for being so stupid and careless. He struggled to break free and scream, to call for help, but the man gripped him tightly, his fingers digging into Takao's cheeks.

"You really thought you could run away? Bad boy, Kazu, bad boy. You're so ungrateful, after everything I've done for you. To think that you would repay all my kindness like this... I'm disappointed. Now you better be nice and come with me without fighting..." he drawled, one of his hands clasping over Takao's previously dislocated shoulder and squeezing. "Or this time I'll snap your tendon and you won't be able to play basketball ever again. You wouldn't like that, would you?"

He'd never imagined Toujiro would be capable of going so far to torment a second-rate toy like him. He had been stupid to think he could run and hide and go back to his life. The image of Shin-chan in his white armor rescuing him from this horror flashed across his mind and a load of tears streamed down his face.

_Save me, Shin-chan_

* * *

Midorima woke up with a start. His heart clenched in pain.

For a moment, he could swear he'd heard Takao's voice calling for him.

* * *

"Please, please let me go." He pleaded softly, choking on his tears. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, please!"

Toujiro sneered and pushed him down on his stomach, looming over him menacingly. "Let you go? And what would you do then? Do you really think anyone else will take you after I've left my mark all over your filthy body? Would you run back to your precious Shin-chan? He'd be disgusted if he saw your true face. You should feel lucky that someone like me has time to waste on a filthy whore like you." He grabbed him by the hair and spat on his face. "Now, be a good slut and service me. You haven't gotten any cock for a while, all of your holes must be starved. If you behave, I'll even let you enjoy some of my toys."

He stopped struggling altogether. Toujiro would kill him tonight, for sure. He hoped he would. He had no way out, dying was a lot better an option than this life. He cried in pain. Toujiro pulled him by the hair again to face him and Takao's eyes widened in horror as he saw his cellphone in his tormentor's hands.

"It seems you lost this, good thing I had a tracking device installed on it, huh?" he flipped the phone open and showed Takao the screen with "Shin-chan" written on it. He had to gasp for breathe, the terror and pain so much there was hardly any oxygen in his lungs.

"Maybe we should give Shin-chan a call, to let him know how much you're enjoying yourself."

* * *

Midorima couldn't shake off the dreadful feeling that had been choking him ever since he woke up from his mid-shift nap. No matter how many times he told himself that it had all been a product of his imagination, he still felt chills going down his back from time to time, and heard Takao's voice calling his name. He'd thought about calling the Hawk Eye, but it was way past midnight and he would have no excuse for such a strange call, so he'd held back.

His phone buzzed at four, and he picked up without checking who was calling, somehow convinced it was Takao.

"Yes?"

"_Midorima-kun? It's Kuroko."_

Midorima was not expecting that. It'd been a while since he'd last spoken to the phantom man because he'd been actively trying to avoid his former teammates since the engagement was decided (except for Akashi, obviously, since Kanako was his cousin).

"_I'm sorry for the time, I heard you were on the night shift."_

The agitation in Kuroko's voice was another thing he didn't expect. In all the years that they'd known each other, Midorima could count the times he'd seen Kuroko out of his deadpan (other than during games) with his taped fingers only. Was Kuroko or his stupid lover in some sort of trouble that required medical assistance? He couldn't think of any other reason to receive such a call.

"Did something happen?"

"_Takao-kun has gone missing and he's probably in danger."_

His breath caught in his throat. That feeling hadn't been his imagination after all.

"_I can't give you the details, but he got caught in a big problem and he's been hiding in our place for a couple of weeks. He hasn't come back in two days and we're unable to reach him. I'm afraid he's been… caught by the people he was hiding from. I've called the police to make the report, Aomine-kun is helping there but… I just didn't know what else to do. I thought you could call other hospitals to see if he… turns up. I'm sorry, Midorima-kun."_

Midorima didn't wait to hear the rest of what Kuroko had to say. He hung up and dialed Takao's number, which he knew by heart, with shaky fingers. There were four rings before he finally heard the line click.

"Takao? Takao, where are you?"

For a moment there was no reply, just the faint sound of sobbing in the distance. His heart was racing.

"Takao! Talk to me! What's happening?!"

"_Oh, if it isn't our dear old friend Shin-chan. I was just about to call you, what a nice coincidence." _

The voice that answered was not Takao's. He'd heard that voice before, but where? The sobbing got louder.

"Who are you? Where's Takao?"

The voice sneered. "_Don't worry_, Shin-chan." The way the name sounded in that man's voice made him sick. "_We're just having some healthy fun, aren't we_, Kazu?"

A spark ignited in his memory. That voice was Tozai Toujiro, his father's potential business partner and Takao's boyfriend. What was going on? Did Kuroko misunderstand what happened? Had Takao decided to hide with his boyfriend from whatever peril was hunting him? Something felt wrong about this.

"Let me speak with Takao."

Tozai hollered in laughter. _"I'm not sure about that, we're kind of in the middle of something here."_

A tight knot constricted Midorima's throat.

"_But it would be rude to hang up now, wouldn't it? Hey Kazu, why don't you answer Shin-chan's question, huh? Tell him _exactly_ what's going on now."_

He heard more sobbing. This was definitely wrong.

"_C'mon, tell him!"_

"_N-n-no."_ Takao's voice came faint and shaky.

"_You sure about that? Fucking slut!"_

A hoarse scream followed and Midorima was frozen in his spot, as if he'd been struck by lightning.

"_No! P-p-p-please, please no more, PLEASE STOP!"_

Another scream. Tozai cackled madly in the background. A muffled whimper, as if Takao was biting his lip to hold his screams back.

"_I'll stop if you tell Shin-chan how you're feeling."_ Something snapped and cracked and Takao couldn't hold it back anymore.

"_NOOO! PLEASE, EVERYTHING BUT THAT PLEA-" _Takao's plead was cut by another scream. "_IT HURTS! IT HURTS STOP IT PLEASE!"_

Midorima started to panic. "Takao! Takao where are you?!" he had to save him. That man was hurting Takao. His screams and sobs mixed with sickening sounds were deafening, he couldn't think straight.

"_I'm sorry, Shin-chan, as you can see, this whore is not feeling very talkative right now. It seems his mouth is only good for one thing, after all. I'll send you some pictures later."_

He went livid with ire. "DON'T YOU FUCKING DARE HURT HIM!" before he knew what he was doing, he was rushing out of the hospital, crashing with other doctors and patients without noticing.

"_Oh, don't worry about that_." Takao screamed again in the background. "_You know, he doesn't admit it, but filthy sluts like him enjoy this quite a lot_." Midorima wanted to vomit. "_Anyway, I'm growing tired of this whore, if you want him I'll drop him by your place in a while. I'm sure you'll appreciate the nice job I've done on him._"

Takao was pleading again. "_Please don't! Leave him alone, please_!"

Midorima's mind was buzzing with anger, impotence and horror. "TAKAO! TAKAO! GET YOUR HANDS OFF HIM!" tears were running down his face

"_Rest assured, I've got something much better than my hands on him_."

"I'LL KILL YOU. I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU."

A long, broken scream followed and then the line died. Midorima fell to his knees.

**To be continued**

I am sorry for this. I am even hesitant to post it because it's so horrible. I won't ask you to comment on it, but if you're still willing to follow this story you have my gratitude and a promise that this is as bad as it gets.


	11. Which do you think is more important?

**Chapter 10**

**Which do you think is more important?**

The next few hours were the worst in Midorima's life. Every minute that passed was a minute that Takao was being hurt by that man. He tried calling again, but Tozai never picked up the phone. After running aimlessly through the city like a madman, he realized he wasn't achieving anything this way, and that there was little to nothing he could do. He cried with despair and impotence. Tokyo was immense. They could be anywhere, and he didn't even know Tozai's address. He remembered Tozai owned a black Toyota, but how many people in Tokyo did? And what were the chances that he owned half a dozen other cars anyway? Kuroko had already checked Takao's apartment and there were no signs of him having been there since he'd first left, nearly a month ago. He'd called his acquaintances in other hospitals in the area and asked to be notified if Takao showed up. Aomine had called to say they'd found Takao's wallet in the Ikebukuro bus terminal but they'd searched the area and found nothing.

He felt useless. Takao was somewhere out there being tortured by that man while he was sitting in the hospital, unable to do anything but wait. The screams and cries resonated in his mind and made his imagination run wild; horrific images played before his eyes over and over.

At seven thirty, his pager went off, and a short message indicated he should hurry to the hospital entrance. He didn't think he was in the right mind to tend to any emergency, but he went anyway. A crowd was gathered around something, gasps of horror could be heard, while two doctors screamed orders. Before he could get closer to see what has happening, his boss approached him and handed him a piece of paper with his name written on it, a severe look on her face.

"Care to explain?"

He glanced at the words on the paper and felt his stomach turning inside out

"_Dear Shin-chan: You said you wanted this toy of mine, so I thought I'd give it to you as a token of appreciation. Hope you enjoy it._"

He pushed his boss aside, panicking as he made his way through the crowd. His insides twisted over in horror as he saw Takao laying on the floor, naked, his face full of bruises and cuts, his lips swollen. He had a cut above one eyebrow and dry blood was mixing with tears, staining his face. His other eye was black and his eyelid was bulgy. His neck was bruised all around. He was curled into himself, whimpering, his body was covered in deep gashes, scratches, bite marks and more bruises. There were splotches of semen on different parts of his battered body, and a string of blood was leaking from between his legs.

"TAKAO!" he rushed to his side, unable to think straight.

"NO! NO! GO AWAY! DON'T LOOK AT ME! DON'T LOOK AT ME!" The shorter man screamed, his voice broken and hoarse, desperately trying to push him away, more tears streaming down his face. He could barely move though, and he seemed on the verge of losing consciousness.

Other doctors pushed him aside to make way for the cart, so they could transport Takao inside.

"Wait! Don't lay him on his back!" another voice called, and Takao was laid on his side. Midorima looked up to find Takao's pale back cracked by large, angry red gashes that were still bleeding. The wounds formed a pattern and Midorima soon realized they were words written on broken skin.

_MY WHORE_

He vomited.

* * *

When he woke up, his head was pounding and the left side of his face was sore. The last thing he remembered was panicking and screaming Takao's name, trying to reach him as the other interns pushed him away on the medical cart. Three other doctors had had to restrain him so he wouldn't intrude in Takao's emergency treatment in his deranged state of mind, and when he continued struggling, someone had punched him in the face and everything had gone black.

Panic surged through him once again and he rushed out of the room, but was stopped on his tracks by his boss, the head of the cardiology department.

"The patient is unconscious now, we put him on a lot of morphine, so he shouldn't be in any pain. His life is also out of peril, he lost quite a bit of blood, but most of his injuries are superficial. He also had signs of choking, but nothing life-threatening either. We will keep him under observation, but we'll probably have him discharged once he wakes up and we run some tests." She said methodically, her eyes cold as glaciers. "You will explain this to me, THIS INSTANT, and it better be a damned good explanation. I have refrained from calling the police, but I will not hesitate to hand the monster responsible for _that_ over to the authorities, no matter how much of a brilliant doctor they may be."

His legs gave in as the memory of Takao's broken body came forth and he had to sit down. "His name's Takao. Takao Kazunari. He's… in high school… we were best friends."

He couldn't tell her the truth. He omitted most of the details, and just told her that Takao had been hiding from someone, like Kuroko had said. He said he didn't know who had done it, or how that man knew his name. He was afraid of how she'd react if she knew Takao was gay, or that his abuser was actually his boyfriend. As he spoke the watered-down version of the story, he noticed how all the signs had been there and he just had been too blind to see them. Takao's subtle limp every time they met. How he covered all of his body on heavy clothing, in spite of the summer heat. His empty smiles, and how he avoided his eyes every time he asked if he was injured. That time he showed up with his face bruised and a dislocated shoulder. He should've realized it sooner. Takao had been probably crying for help in silence, and he'd been too blinded by jealousy or stupid romantic fantasies to see it. He could've prevented this if he had paid more attention.

After he was done talking, Dr. Ienaga sighed. "I have the feeling that you're hiding something from me, but I'll believe your story. I'll need your friend's contact information, does he have any family? Someone will have to look after him while the police investigates and-"

"I'll do it." He blurted. "Takao… he won't want to trouble his family. I can take care of him, I know how to do it. I'll cover the hospital fees too." He was desperate to _do_ something. He'd failed spectacularly in noticing Takao was in trouble and protecting him, he had to do something to help him, keep him safe from that man. He would never let that monster lay a hand on Takao again. "Please, let me see him. I'll go back to my rounds afterwards, I just want… I _need_ to see him." He wanted to make sure that Takao was okay. He had to confirm that he was indeed here, in the hospital, safe, and not lost somewhere out there in that man's grasp.

Dr. Ienaga frowned "You'll do your rounds _now_, you've been completely useless all night. When he wakes up I'll talk to him, and _then_ I'll decide if you can see him."

* * *

Takao woke up with an all too familiar soreness all over his body. He didn't know where he was or how long he'd been out of it. His memories were clouded with fear and pain. The only thing he knew for sure was that Toujiro hadn't been merciful enough to kill him. He tried to sit up, but the pain was so much and coming from so many places, that he couldn't muster the strength to do it, so he examined the room with his eyes. He saw beeping machines, blinding white light, tubes connecting plastic bags to his arm and figured he had somehow made it to a hospital.

"I'm glad you woke up. How are you feeling?"

Takao saw a young and attractive brunet doctor standing by the bed.

"C-c-confused." He was surprised by the coarse sound of his own voice, his throat felt raw.

"This is the Tokyo University Hospital. I'm Dr. Ienaga Hideko. We found you on our front door this morning in terrible conditions."

Takao's mind started racing. Todai's Hospital… of course it sounded familiar since it was such a prestigious hospital (how would he pay for this, he had no clue), but there was something else that should be ringing some bells, he just couldn't quite place his finger on what it was.

"I know this may be a lot to take in, but you didn't have anything on you, so I'll need to confirm your personal information. We will keep you in observation for a few more hours, but there's not much else we can do except prescribing you some pain medicines and let your wounds heal by themselves. You don't have any broken bones or other severe injuries. We can redirect you to a counselor if you so desire, given what you've gone through. The police is waiting outside to talk to you. If you want it, I can stay with you while they ask their questions."

A voice flashed through his mind.

_I hope you're not thinking of talking to the police after we're done, are you? We're having so much fun after all. Besides, while I was out looking for you I found your folks' place. Your sister… Kazuha, is it? She's pretty cute, you know? Looks a lot like you._

Panic took over him and he flailed his arms desperately.

"NO! Not the police! I-I don't remember anything anyway, it would be a waste of time." He blurted. He'd take any pain a thousand times over, but he'd never, _ever_, put his little sister in any sort of danger. "J-just… just I… I need a phone I… I need to call someone I… p-p-please, I need a phone."

The doctor didn't look too pleased, but she nodded and pointed at the telephone on his bedside table before exiting the room.

He had never dialed so fast in his life.

"_Big bro? What's up?"_

"Kazuha? Are you alright? Where are you? And Mom and Dad?"

She took a moment to reply. Judging by the sound, she was probably eating something.

"_Mom and Dad are working and I'm having lunch with some friends. Is something wrong? You sound kind of sick."_

Relief washed over him to the point that he almost forgot about the pain.

"I'm… I'm fine. Just thought we hadn't talked in a while. Be careful on your way home, okay?"

"_I always am. 'Sides, I'm a black belt, it's you I worry about, honestly. Are you coming for Obon? You haven't been around much lately, we miss you."_

"Sorry kiddo, don't think I can make it. I gotta go now. Take care."

He sighed, the panic that had been briefly relieved by his sister's voice slowly crawling again into the back of his mind. He had to find a way to fix this. Maybe Toujirou had left his family in the clear today, but maybe tomorrow he'd grow bored of just torturing his body and seek out new ways to hurt him. There was no way he could run away now, knowing his family could be in danger. His chest clenched in despair.

The doctor walked back in and waited for him to acknowledge her to start talking again, as if nothing had interrupted their conversation.

"The police insist on asking some routine questions. Maybe you think you don't remember anything, but I'm sure there's something you can tell them that will help find whoever did this to you." She said, concern drawn on her face. She seemed like a nice person, Takao thought briefly.

"I… I don't want to talk now. I really have nothing to say. I… I blacked out, I don't remember anything." Even if he didn't say anything, he had no way of knowing if Toujiro had someone spying on him, and if he did, and saw him talking to the police, he would be risking Kazuha's life. He had to think of something to keep those officers away from him. "I… Can I… could you please tell them that I'll contact them later? I'm not feeling well right now, everything's just so… confusing."

Once again, she didn't seem pleased with his answer, but nodded anyway. "Alright, if that's what you wish. Like I was saying, none of your injuries are life threatening, so we'll sign for your release once we finish some routine examinations, but you will need someone to help you, you shouldn't move around much. Is there anyone we can call? A relative or a friend that could look after you while you heal?"

His first thought went to Kuroko and Kagami, but he shook it away. He couldn't keep getting them involved in this mess. In fact, he couldn't risk getting anyone he knew involved, especially not his parents. He swallowed, and his throat throbbed painfully.

"Uhm I… I'm not sure, uh… let me think about it?" he said, rushedly, hoping to gain some time "I'll pay the fees, I just need to get back home to fetch some cash." That was a lie. He'd been carrying all of his money, and he wasn't really sure of where he had dropped it. He'd figure it out later. He couldn't even imagine how he was going to keep on living; trying to run away had failed as miserably as any other attempts at escaping from Toujiro's grasp and now he had even gotten his friends and family in the line of fire. Maybe he should stop resisting, go back to his apartment and resign to his fate. Maybe Toujiro would eventually grow bored of him if he stopped struggling. He started panicking again. He'd never felt so desperate and afraid in his entire life, and he had no idea of how to get out of it. He didn't even have the confidence to ask for help, he felt so ashamed and filthy he wouldn't dare to look at any of his friends in the eye.

"Oh, about that, someone has already covered it, you don't have to worry about it." She said nonchalantly.

That took him by surprise.

"Hold on. Someone paid my fees? Why? Who was it?"

The doctor sighed and looked at him, as if hesitating whether to answer his question. "One of our residents, Midorima Shintarou. He says he's a friend of yours."

Right. Todai Hospital was where Shin-chan worked. Brilliant. Of all the people Takao didn't want to be seen by, not in these shameful, pathetic circumstances.

"I can't accept it. Tell him that, please. I don't want to bother him any more than I already have."

She sighed again. "You can tell him yourself. He'll come to visit later, he's very worried about you." And she left before Takao could object. He hid his face with his hands and started crying. The tears stung the open wounds on his face and his already exhausted eyes. He would've preferred getting killed by Toujiro's rage than having to live to meet Shin-chan in this disgusting condition.

* * *

Midorima entered the room cautiously and saw Takao curled up on the bed with the covers up to his head. Only a tuft of raven hair was visible. Was he sleeping? He approached quietly, hoping not to wake him, and sat on a chair beside the bed.

"I'm sorry. I couldn't protect you. I'm so sorry." He whispered as he placed his hand on Takao's head gently, brushing raven locks in between his fingers.

The shorter man flinched violently and pulled back from the touch, whimpering.

"DON'T TOUCH ME." He yelled. The movement had revealed his bruised face, and the feral look in his eyes, a mix of terror and anger. His expression shifted to one of shame once he seemed to realize where he was and what was going on. "I-I'm sorry. I thought…"

Midorima felt his heart clench. The look in Takao's eyes killed him.

"Forgive me. That was careless." After everything that happened, it was obvious that Takao would be terrified from even the slightest touch. He felt horribly guilty and stupid for triggering any variety of bad memories in his wounded friend.

"No… it's not your fault. I'm sorry I've caused you so much trouble." Takao didn't meet his eyes and hid his face under the covers again. "Please go away." He pleaded. He didn't want Shin-chan to see him like this. He hadn't looked at himself in the mirror, but he figured he must look absolutely hideous, if the swelling and soreness all over his body were anything to go by. "I'm sorry that you have to see me in this disgusting state." He felt like a used, broken, discarded doll. _Filthy. Worthless_.

The doctor clenched his teeth. "What are you even saying?" Takao looked up to find Midorima's emerald eyes overflowing with tears. "Why are YOU apologizing?" His heart cracked seeing the beautiful tsundere crying for him. "After what that man did to you… how can you even think you have something to apologize for? I'm the one who should apologize. I should've noticed that something was wrong. Even after that… that… phone call… I couldn't do anything… I let him hurt you…"

Takao wanted to say something, but he found he didn't have the words. Before he could think twice about it, he raised his arm and wiped the tears from Shin-chan's cheek with his thumb. The tears were warm against his skin, and they seemed to alleviate his pain.

"Why didn't you tell me that he was hurting you? I could've… I could've done something. I could've… protected you."

There were a lot of reasons, of course. For starters, that he'd brought it on himself. Between his desperation for a new life, his foolish interest in the mysterious and dangerous, and his inability to let go of the past, he'd found himself trapped by a psychopath whom he'd managed to anger beyond forgiveness. And then, a side of him had been partially brainwashed without his noticing. Before he knew it, he'd started thinking he was too gross to deserve salvation, and that no one would have him once Toujiro kicked him away. He'd been so afraid of being lonely, afraid that Shin-chan would reject him once he knew the disgusting truth. But he couldn't tell such pitiful things to Shin-chan.

"I just didn't want to bother you. Toujiro… he's important for your father's business. I didn't want to put you in a conflicting position. I know your family's important to you."

Midorima slammed his fist on the nightstand, and Takao nearly jumped out of the bed.

"What the fuck is that?!" he bellowed, his eyes red with tears and anger. "Are you stupid?! Between YOU and my father's shop, which do you think is more important, you idiot?!"

Takao had not expected such a reaction, nor the underlying message. His heart got caught in his throat, and he tried to apologize, but he couldn't find the words. Midorima breathed heavily to calm himself down and then bit his lip, looking at Takao apologetically.

"I'm sorry. I-I shouldn't talk to you like that, after what you've been through. You don't deserve it. The one I'm angry with isn't you, I'm sorry."

Takao shook his head lightly.

They stayed silent for a moment. Takao couldn't bring himself to look at Midorima in the eye.

"I… I heard you called your sister…"Midorima began tentatively. "Did he… did he say he would hurt her?"

He recoiled into himself as if he'd been burned and turned away, whimpering at the memory. _She's okay_, he had to tell himself, _she's safe_. _She'll be safe so long as you keep your mouth shut_.

"I called Aomine. He… he's a police officer now, you know? He's asked some of his co-workers to keep an eye around your parents' place, just to be safe."

Takao didn't know what to say. He wanted to say he was grateful, but he was still too scared, too worried. He feared if he let his guard down and allowed any sort of relief into his system, everything would burst into flames again.

"I… I won't let that man hurt you again, I promise." Midorima continued, not an ounce of hesitation in his voice "I know you don't want to worry your parents, but you can't go back to your place until we figure out how to keep him away for good. I have an apartment across the street, I only use it when I'm on long shifts, but you can stay there while you recover. And I'll stick around to help you with the medicines and anything else you need. Dr. Ienaga said you shouldn't move around for a while. It'll be bes-"

"No, wait, Shin-chan." He turned around again to face the taller man and bit his tongue, angry at himself for slipping. "I can't impose on you like that, I've caused you enough problems as it is." he remembered something then. "Besides, you have that t-tea ceremony with Kanako-san's family . And lots of w-w-wedding preparations left. You may have to find a new best man, and-"

"Takao. Do not make me repeat myself." Midorima interrupted, with a serious tone. "Between you and the wedding, which do you think is more important? Now tell me where you hide your extra keys, I'll go to your place to fetch you some clothes, Dr. Ienaga will sign your release soon."

Takao's heart started beating so fast he wondered why the beeping machine wasn't catching up to it. He felt that he had to keep objecting, but somehow, Shin-chan's words were making it hard for him to keep his brain straight, so he told Shin-chan that the spare was hidden in his mailbox and heard him say "I'll be back soon" before exiting the room.

* * *

Getting to Midorima's apartment had been as awkward as Takao had imagined. After getting discharged (at around 10 o'clock in the night), Midorima had pushed him on a wheelchair to the parking lot, where his black Honda awaited. But when Shin-chan opened the door and tried to help him in, Takao leapt to put as much distance between himself and the vehicle as possible, his mind flooding with all the terrors he'd come to associate with black cars. He fell to the ground and howled in pain. The doctor had had to hail a (yellow) taxi and help him get up. The ride was also extremely short, to the point that Takao thought it ridiculous. When Shin-chan said he had an apartment across the street, he didn't think he literally meant across the street.

"Why'd you even pay a taxi to cross the street? That's such a waste." He said, trying to get on his feet. When he stood straight, he felt a jolt of pain coming up his spine and he had to lean on Midorima to avoid falling again.

"Because I don't want you walking more than the absolutely necessary."

The apartment was small compared to the Midorima manor, but it was bigger than Takao's place. Shin-chan showed him straight to the bedroom, where the futon had already been laid out. Takao couldn't help the warm feeling that took over him thinking of everything Shin-chan was doing for him.

"I called Kuroko to let him know you're alright. He and Kagami were very worried."

Takao grasped the cover, feeling guilty for causing even more problems for his two friends. "I'm sorry. Toujiro he… he said he would hurt them if I kept hiding with them, so I ran."

Midorima kneeled down next to him. "Kuroko and Kagami are perfectly capable of taking care of themselves. As am I. Worry about yourself, because that's what all of us are doing."

Takao flinched as his sitting position sent another jolt of pain over his body. Midorima cringed. "Kuroko also gave me this… He said that… you've used it before." The green-haired doctor handed him a bottle of ointment, and he felt disgusting all over again. "I'll give you some privacy, and I'll make us something to eat meanwhile, alright? If you need anything call me. And also…" he paused, a haunted expression overtaking his features. "Don't… don't lie on your back. You've got… some bad cuts there."

He nodded, staring at the ointment and waited for the door to click closed before uncapping it.

After dinner (simple curry rice, and although Shin-chan had always been a terrible cook, Takao hadn't tasted something so delicious and warm in his entire life), Takao had felt extremely tired (even though he'd been unconscious for half a day) and before he knew it, he was already curled up beneath the covers and his eyes felt heavy from sleep.

"Hey, Shin-chan? Where are you going to sleep?" he asked groggily, letting the nickname slip by.

"I have a futon laid out in the living room, don't worry."

He didn't say anything, but he was starting to dread being left alone in the room. " 'm sorry… I'm just giving you more and more trouble."

"I already told you to stop apologizing. Call me if you need anything, and I mean _anything_. Good night."

The room grew unbearably cold when Shin-chan left.

* * *

Midorima was awakened by a loud scream and he dashed to the bedroom. He found Takao curled in a defensive ball and swatting at the air, as if trying to push away an invisible monster.

"Stop! STOP! PLEASE NO MORE!" he screamed. His eyes were open wide in distress, but he seemed completely lost in his nightmare. Midorima rushed to his side, not knowing what to do to wake him up.

"Takao! It' alright, Takao, it's just a nightmare!"

His voice went unheard, and Takao's writhing seemed to just bring forth the pain from his multiple wounds, making the nightmare even more real. Not knowing what else to do, he surrounded Takao's small frame with his arms and pulled him into a tight embrace, burying the raven head in his chest.

"It's okay, Takao, I'm here. I'm right here. You're safe. He can't hurt you now. You're safe. I'll protect you. You're safe now." He chanted, humming softly and rocking his body, trying to sooth the fragile man in his arms. For half a minute, Takao punched him and tried to kick himself free desperately, but his breathing slowly went back to its normal rhythm and his small hands clutched the front of Midorima's pajamas. "Sh-Shin-chan…" he whimpered.

The doctor hushed him and kept him tightly held, gently caressing his raven hair. "You're okay. You're safe. It was just a bad dream."

Midorima didn't know how long it took for Takao to regain his composure. The smaller man cried in silence for a long while, soaking his pajamas, and mumbling incoherent apologies. Finally, he pulled away from Midorima's embrace, his eyes red and puffy from crying.

"I'm sorry for waking you up." He said with a sad smile.

"Takao, if you keep apologizing, I'll have you eat my shiruko okayu three times a day."

He chuckled (and it was a surprise to realize he still had it in him to do so). The one time he'd tasted Midorima's infamous culinary specialty, the aftertaste had lasted for three days and it had made him throw up several times "Sorry I…" and then he chuckled again. "Thank you."

Midorima helped him to get back on the futon. "You should go back to sleep."

He nodded. He was even more exhausted than before, but now he was afraid to go to sleep and get trapped by another nightmare. The room was cold and empty, and he couldn't help feeling afraid when left alone. He kind of hoped Shin-chan would stay by his side tonight, he wasn't sure he would make it through otherwise, but he was too ashamed to ask.

"Hey, Takao?" he looked up to see a nervous and hesitant Shin-chan looking down at him. "The… the living room is very cold. Would you mind if I bring my futon in here? The room is spacious, I think it would fit alright" he wanted to be considerate of Takao's space, because he was aware that any physical contact may trigger his nightmares, but at the same time, he'd noticed the sad and scared look in Takao's crystal eyes that seemed to plead "_Don't leave me alone."_

Takao smiled, genuinely this time. A few minutes later, laying side by side with only half a meter separating them, he could finally close his eyes with most of his fears having dissipated. His hand sneaked outside of the cover and found a larger, calloused, warm hand. Takao hummed pleasantly when their fingers laced together, finally feeling truly safe.

**To be continued**

I know everyone wanted Shin-chan to save Kazu, but in the real world things aren't that simple. I also fucked around with how law enforcement and hospitals actually work to suit my convenience, sorry for that. But at least this chapter ended on a sort of hopeful note? It's the first of the kind we've had in a while, and it's pretty long too, I hope that makes up for all the pain we've gone through so far. Of course it's still a long way until Takao heals, both his body and mind have been heavily wounded, but at least now he's not on his own to deal with it all.

Friendly reminder that updates are every other Friday (unless a special occasion like MidoTaka day or Shin-chan's birthday happens, but we don't have any of those until TakaMido day in October). Next chapter is up in two weeks, Friday 24th.

We're already halfway through the story, it feels like it's going by so fast now. Thanks everyone for all your comments and feedback, I appreciate all of them a lot. It's really encouraging to know people like this story and that it's making you feel stuff, because that's the whole point. I hope you continue to enjoy it, please do let me know what you think, and thank you for all your faith and patience. See you in two weeks!


	12. I'll keep you safe

**Chapter 11**

**I'll keep you safe**

His eyes shot open in panic, but this time it took him merely a fraction of a second to realize he was not in the place of his nightmares, and that was due to the emerald eyes that met his the moment he woke up. He'd waken up screaming four or five more times during the night –the memories of each episode were too blurry to be sure-, and every time, Shin-chan would hold him and whisper comforting words in his ear until he fell back asleep.

He couldn't help but focus on the dark circles around Shin-chan's eyes, and he opened his mouth to apologize, but Shin-chan started speaking before he could say a word.

"Good morning." He said flatly, but the scowl on his face was telling him "I know what you want to say and you better not say it because I've asked you to stop three dozen times already" so Takao managed to put a half-smile on his face and return the greeting.

"I've prepared the bath for you." The green-haired doctor announced, and Takao detected a little hesitation in his voice. "Ideally you should have someone help you out, but I will understand if you want some privacy."

The words made his open wounds sting underneath the fabric of his pajamas, and he wanted to say 'thank you', because if there was one thing he didn't want, that would be letting Shin-chan see his body in its currently disgraceful state, but he found he couldn't really speak, so he just nodded. Midorima helped him to walk to the bathroom and sit down on a stool close to the tub.

"I will be in the kitchen making breakfast. Call me if you need anything." He said before leaving the room and closing the door behind him. "Let me know when you're done so I can help you change your bandages."

Takao sat still for a moment, feeling the vapors of the hot water filling the room and trying to find a position that wouldn't make him squirm in pain. Eventually he turned around to face the mirror, and he almost fell off the chair. It was the first time he looked at his reflection since… _that_, and it was more hideous than he ever imagined. The scarce areas that were not patched and bandaged were swollen and bruised, and as he started removing the bandages he found countless cuts, his face almost disfigured. He could barely recognize himself, and he feared that the damage would be irreversible. His eyes lay on the bruises around his neck, the memories of hands constricting his throat, the pain in his chest and how his head would spin with the lack of oxygen, made him lose his breath for a moment, and he looked for something to hold on to, to remind himself that he was alive and breathing and safe.

He took off his pajamas and slowly peeled off the bandages over his equally battered body, flinching from time to time when the fabric grazed the open wounds. His torso was entirely covered in bandages, and when he started to pull them off, a jolt of pain shot up his back, making him wince. He remembered that Shin-chan had said he had some nasty cuts on his back. He turned his back to the mirror and looked over his shoulder. His stomach churned up in horror and disgust upon distinguishing the words written on his torn flesh and dried blood. The thought that Shin-chan had seen such a revolting sight mortified him, he wanted to die.

He rushed into the bathtub, not wanting to see that horrible thing anymore. The warm water made the wounds throb painfully, and Takao whimpered in pain. His skin crawled remembering that nightmare. He started scrubbing his arms, his chest, his legs, trying to clean away that horrible sensation, but he still felt filthy, filthy, filthy.

_Who would want a filthy slut like you?_

He scrubbed harder, not even noticing the reopening wounds and the blood flowing into the water. He tried to reach his back, hoping to erase the words carved onto his body, and he started panicking. _Who_ indeed would want him like this, with those terrible marks all over his body and the words written on his skin. He imagined Shin-chan's disgusted face upon finding those marks.

_Whore._

_Whore._

_Whore._

_Your precious Shin-chan would be revolted to see what a whore you are._

He ditched the soap and sponge, and started clawing at his skin, trying to tear it out from his body, wanting to get rid of that creeping feeling. He wanted to vomit. Hot tears started coming down his face. He couldn't breathe. His skin felt sickening and no matter how hard he clawed, all he felt was pain and revulsion. He couldn't shake it off. He was soiled, dirty, and nothing he did would ever make that disgusting sensation fade away.

_Filthy._

_Filthy._

_Filthy._

* * *

Midorima heard Takao scream and he dropped the knife he was holding and rushed into the bathroom, slamming the door open. He found the shorter man curled into himself, scratching himself so hard he was drawing blood. The tub water was reddened, and the raven-haired man seemed completely out of himself.

"Takao! Takao, stop!"

He was breathing heavily, his eyes wide and deranged, tears streaming down his bruised cheeks.

"Filthy. Filthy. Filthy. Filthy. Filthy. Filthy."

Midorima panicked. "Takao, listen to me!"

The broken man's muddled eyes met his and he pulled away, terrified as if he was seeing his tormentor.

"NO! NO! NO! DON'T LOOK AT ME! DON'T TOUCH ME! NO! NO!"

His voice was broken and hoarse; he looked down into the water, still clawing at his skin as if trying to peel it off.

"I'm a disgusting whore. A disgusting whore. Disgusting. Disgusting. It won't come off. It won't come off! Worthless. Filthy. FILTHY! Dirty slut. Disgusting. Gross gross gross."

"Takao, please! I won't touch you, I won't but..."

"A dirty slut. Garbage. A worthless toy. filthy, DISGUSTING! A disgusting, disgusting, disgusting whore. IT WON'T COME OFF."

Takao was completely gone in his world of nightmares and Midorima didn't know how to pull him out of there. His blood boiled when he heard those words. He'd kill the man who did this to Takao, he had no doubts about it. The monster that made Takao think those terrible words were true did not deserve to live. The shorter man started hyperventilating, and Midorima feared he would go into shock if he didn't pull himself back together.

"Takao, Takao, please! Listen to me! Listen to my voice, I'm _right here_!" he wouldn't dare to touch him and trigger a bigger panic attack. "You're safe, he won't hurt you anymore. Look at me, please!"

Takao's mind, muddled by that man's venomous words, suddenly felt a little clearer, and he heard a tender voice calling him. He looked to the side to meet warm, beautiful, emerald eyes, looking into his as if pleading. He could barely make out the words. "…at me. Look at me."

_Please don't look at me._

_I don't want you to see me like this._

"Takao, you need to breathe. Breathe. _Breathe_."

The words, repeated like a mantra, were easier to understand in his perturbed state of mind, and he found himself taking a deep breath, his lungs filled with oxygen and his brain started getting a little more clarity.

"That's right, keep breathing. You're safe. You're safe. You're safe."

_Safe... Safe… Safe._

He stared intently into those emerald eyes. _Safe_. He was safe. No one would hurt him here. He was safe.

Midorima sighed in relief when he saw Takao's eyes refocusing and his breathing slowly going back to normal. He kept repeating the words over and over, his eyes firmly locked with Takao's watery silver ones. The shorter man's shoulders and arms loosened, and he finally stopped scratching his wounded skin, and he seemed to get a grasp of reality again. His eyes filled with anguish, Midorima could tell he was thinking of apologizing again, so he spoke before that could happen.

"Takao, you're safe. I'll keep you safe. I'll never let him hurt you again. All the things he said to you were lies. Lies. Everything will be alright."

Takao opened his mouth to object. _But I'm so disgusting_. He wanted to say, but Midorima shook his head, as if he'd read his mind, never breaking eye contact.

"You are beautiful. Inside and out, you _are_ beautiful. You are a precious treasure. A monster like that would never be able to see how much you're truly worth. But I do. I see it. I _know_ it. _You are beautiful_."

Takao's body went completely limp and fell into Midorima's arms. He trembled, crying into his chest, soaking his shirt with water and tears and blood and Midorima held him tenderly.

"You're safe. You're precious, so precious to me. So beautiful. I'll keep you safe. I will _always_ keep you safe."

The beating of Shin-chan's heart and the tender words that flooded his ears over and over and over again soothed him. He was safe. Shin-chan would keep him safe.

* * *

The phone buzzed for the fifth time and Furihata begrudgingly reached out of the jacuzzi for the accursed gadget, realizing the persistent caller wouldn't give up. Because trying to relax during vacations was completely out of the question, it would seem. He picked up the phone and flipped it open, careful not to drop it into the water.

"This is Midorima, I need to talk to Akashi."

The response startled him out of his grumpiness. How did Midorima even have his phone number, and why would he ever want to call him anyway?

"I have been trying to reach Akashi for three days but he won't pick up his phone." Midorima added, as if he were reading his mind. "He only does that when he's with _you_. This is extremely urgent, I must speak to him now."

Kouki felt a little petrified by the deep, dark tone in Midorima's voice, but he managed to rush out a "Hold on a minute" before turning to look at the other man with whom he was sharing the jacuzzi.

"Sei-san, Midorima-kun wants to talk to you. Says it's urgent."

The annoyed look on his lover's eyes switched to one of concern as he grabbed the phone. Kouki knew the emperor had been scheming something that was in some way related to the miracle shooter, but he didn't really know the details. He also knew Midorima was getting married to a distant relative of Seijuurou, but he was sure that wasn't what this really was about, so he listened trying to pick up on whatever the conversation was.

"Yes, I apologize for not picking up your calls before, I am taking a short vacation in America and I have had my phone turned off for a couple of days."

It was actually Kouki who had shyly asked if Seijuurou could put his phone away, at least for a few days.

"_Hey, Sei-san…_" he'd asked, the blush reaching the tip of his ears. "_Do you think… you know, since it's our h-h-honeymoon…_" he had a hard catching up with the idea of being married to Akashi Seijuurou. "_Maybe you could turn off your phone for a few days_?"

As selfish as it sounded, he didn't want one of Seijuurou's terribly untimely business crises to get in the way of their precious time together, of which they already had very little. He'd imagined he would refuse, but it didn't hurt to try. He looked up, worried that he had upset his lover –no, husband now-, but he was surprised to meet ruby eyes and a rare smile as Seijuurou shut his cellphone off and –in a completely out of character spur of spontaneity- carelessly tossed it away.

"_As your husband, it is my duty to make you my number one priority, correct?"_

He had been so stupidly happy at that time, but now he felt guilty that his selfishness had actually caused some sort of problem back in Japan.

"Oh, I believe I never told you, Kouki and I got married recently… thank you, that is very considerate of you." Kouki blushed, slightly embarrassed by Seijuurou's lack of self-consciousness when it came to saying stuff like that. "I am sorry we could not invite you, but as you know, I had to keep my father from hearing about it…"

In reality, Akashi had gone to America for an important business transaction, but with the excuse of familiarizing himself with the Western business environment, he'd arrived two weeks earlier than planned. He'd proposed to an unsuspecting Kouki -who had come with him using his paid vacation time- in a quite atypically uncomplicated, bordering austere way (one moment they'd been contemplating the night view of Los Angeles from the penthouse, the next one Seijuurou was down on one knee and asking for Kouki's hand in marriage with a golden ring as an offer) and they'd held a discreet ceremony shortly after, taking every necessary precaution to keep Seijuurou's father from knowing. Not that he didn't know about their relationship –and he disapproved of it with every fiber of his being-, but Seijuurou had thought it better not to push their luck for the time being. With two weeks to spare before having to fly to New York for the business transaction that originated this whole trip, they'd dedicated their time to rest, relax, and enjoy each other's company.

Kouki was pulled out of his dreamy remembrance when he noticed a drastic change in his husband's expression, from the relaxed smile he was sporting just a few seconds ago, to a dark and dangerous glare, his left eye briefly flashing gold. His voice also dropped and became deeper, a sign that he was angry beyond words.

"Yes… I understand… Of course… Calm down, Shintarou, leave everything in my hands… Yes, I will certainly see to it, we will not let this go unpunished... No, thank _you_ for trusting me with this… I will make some phone calls now, I will let you know when it is done."

He shut the phone and got up from the water, throwing a sideways glance to Furihata. "Forgive me, Kouki, there is an urgent matter I must attend immediately."

"Did something happen?" Kouki asked, also stepping out of the bath and wrapping a towel around his waist.

"Shintarou asked for a personal favor. It is a very delicate matter, I will tell you the details later."

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

Seijuurou grabbed him by the waist and planted a chaste kiss on his lips and Kouki blushed beet red. Seijuurou's bold displays of affection always made him weak in the knees.

"That shall be enough."

"S-S-Sei-san!" He protested, flustered. Seijuurou was usually a very serious man and Kouki was used to seeing him with his business face, but he could get awfully flirtatious when they were alone, yet it always caught him unguarded.

"Kouki, what will it take for you to drop the honorific? I thought marriage would do the trick, but since that is clearly not the case, I wonder if I should try and put my child in your belly."

Although a part of him always felt relieved on the strange occasion in which Akashi would be able to make a joke –albeit a terribly unfunny one- (seriously, when they'd started dating…), he frowned, unamused, and smacked the ruby-eyed emperor across the head. Besides, for all he knew, Akashi may be serious about wanting to get him pregnant. He knew Seijuurou well enough to think him capable of believing he could get away with even the most ludicrous and biologically impossible ideas.

"Don't say stupid things, Midorima needs your urgent help, doesn't he? I'll boil tea, you should get to those phone calls."

Kouki felt slim arms circling his waist from behind and Seijuurou's wet scarlet hair leaning on his nude shoulder.

"You will be handsomely compensated once I'm done with this."

He felt the emperor's lips against his bare skin curving into a small, tender smile and he blushed.

"I'll look forward to that, _Sei_." And he relished in the soft gasp and the way his love's body stilled and heated up behind him.

* * *

Kuroko and Kagami came to visit for dinner. By then, Takao had managed to compose himself quite a bit. An entire day of lying in bed whilst Shin-chan pampered him had done wonders for his mood and peace of mind. His friends had called at some point in the day to ask for his well-being and express their wish to see him, and although he'd been initially reluctant to let more people see him in this pitiful state, Kuroko had bribed him with the promise of Kagami's cooking.

"_Or perhaps you would prefer Midorima-kun's home-made meals."_

Needless to say, and much as he appreciated the effort Shin-chan put in preparing edible food, he'd grown a little bit too spoiled by all the time he'd spent under Kuroko and Kagami's roof to reject Kagami's food.

Around six o'clock, the doorbell rang and Midorima went to answer the door. Takao couldn't actually see the entrance –Midorima had insisted he remained in bed unless strictly necessary- but he heard Kuroko's voice before he felt three pairs of footsteps rushing towards him.

"Takao-kun!" Kuroko exclaimed after entering the room, immediately kneeling by his side. "I am so very sorry." He said, surprising Takao, and he wrapped his small, pale hands around his. "Even though we said we would help you, we could do nothing to protect you. You ended getting hurt trying to protect us, I am so, so sorry." His voice quivered at the end. Takao was startled to see small tears pooling at the corners of those baby blue eyes and he felt his own watering a little too.

"We both are." Kagami added, sitting beside his husband and adding one of his hands on top of the other two pairs, a deep scowl installed on his features. "I promise that scumbag won't get away with this. We'll find a way to make him pay and put him away so he can't hurt you ever again." His last free hand joined the pile and he smiled. "If you need anything you must call us right away, no matter what. If Midorima tries to feed you his shitty food, just ring me and I'll fix it."

Shin-chan –who was just watching over the scene from the doorway- looked like he wanted to protest for a moment, but instead he just huffed and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

Takao found himself smiling, even as a couple of tears slid down his cheeks. "Thanks, guys, really. It means a lot." He managed to croak out and his smile grew a little bit wider. His chest was filled with warmth and he realized how grateful he ought to be for having such amazing, loving friends that would hold his hand and help him go through this terrible time and ease the pain of everything he'd gone through.

* * *

It took an entire week for Takao to be able to walk on his own again without collapsing from the pain. He still had nightmares and panic attacks, and most of his wounds looked like they would take some time to heal, but Midorima's care and gentleness, with the help of Kagami's food (he'd left about two-weeks worth of amazing stuff in the freezer) and Kuroko's occasional company, was slowly nursing him back into health.

As he started to feel better –physically and mentally- he'd started looking for apartments; he couldn't keep freeloading on Midorima forever (although he seemed to be getting awfully skilled at freeloading recently). He also didn't know who had talked with Kagetora-san (probably Kuroko), because when he'd called to apologize for neglecting his job and offering his resignation, his boss had rejected it and said that if he wanted to compensate his absence he should get better soon so he could go back to work. Takao kept realizing time and time again, how blessed he was for having people who understood and supported him, and how grateful he felt for it.

Midorima was at the hospital right now, a chance Takao took to wash the dishes and do some chores –the green-haired doctor would not have him doing any sort of physical labor, but Takao just couldn't stand feeling like a leech, being cared and pampered by Midorima without giving anything in return. As if all of that was not enough, Midorima had apparently called in some gigantic favor so his work schedule was more flexible and allowed him to be at home during the night, when Takao's terrors would surface more strongly. Now he felt awfully indebted to his friend and couldn't even begin to imagine how he'd pay him back for everything he was doing.

The doorbell rang while he was busy sweeping the floor. He approached the door, not sure if he should open if Midorima wasn't around. A second ring convinced him, and he was about to unlock it when he heard a voice coming from the hallway, that made him freeze on the spot.

"I know you're in there, whore. If you don't open this fucking door this instant, the next thing I'll be branding will be your slut face!"

**To be continued**

First of all I'd like to thank everyone who's read or commented, the latest batch of chapters have received very positive responses, which greatly encourages me.

This chapter is a bit of a mixed bag of both painful moments and heart-warming ones. The bathroom scene was one of the first I conceived for this story, and I cried while writing it. It's a difficult process and I really hope I'm doing this difficult topic some sort of justice.

Many had asked about Akashi's intervention and it's finally time for him to intervene (with some bonus Akafuri), I hope you liked that.

Hope you like this chapter. Sorry for the cliffhanger! Please let me know what you think, I appreciate all of your comments and opinions!


	13. You can't hurt me

**Chapter 13**

**You can't hurt me**

Takao was petrified. His blood was cold as ice. His bones and muscles frozen. He couldn't move, or think, or speak. His skin started to crawl with the nightmarish memories.

"I said: open the door, little cunt." Toujiro said with a sultry voice that held an edge of menace.

_NO!_ His mind screamed. He wouldn't open. He had no reason to. He was safe behind this door. Toujiro held no power over him with the door between them.

"I wonder if _Shin-chan_ appreciated the fine work I did on you last time. Now if he wants to fuck you he'll have to remember how I made you enjoy _my_ dick first."

His stomach twisted in disgust and the words carved on his back started to sting. He should walk away from the door, stop listening to those words that were like poison to him.

"Y'see, your precious Shin-chan is trying to ruin me. Can you believe it? After everything I've done for you, the ungrateful bastard! Without me, he would've never known how much of a whore you are. And I even went out of my way to drop you at his door, like the useless pile of trash that you are, and how does he repay me? By calling some big shots and getting _me_ in trouble, that prick!" Toujiro kicked the door and Takao jumped back, even though it wasn't strong enough to kick it down . "And not just _any_ big shots, oh no. That fucking coward couldn't even do anything by himself, he must've gone and whored himself out and get the fucking _Akashi Group_ on my ass. But unlike him, I'm not an ungrateful shit, I'll make sure to repay _every. fucking. thing. back_." He kicked the door again and snarled. "You'll understand that, since he clearly didn't appreciate my little present, I came to take it back. I can't blame him, really. Who would appreciate a filthy slut, even as a gift? You should be grateful, I'm the only one who would waste their time on a disgusting bitch like you."

The venomous words started spreading over his mind, going around in circles again and again.

_Whore._

_Filthy. _

_Disgusting. _

_Whore._

He tried to breathe like Shin-chan always told him to do every time he had a panic attack.

"N-n-nooo." His voice was broken and almost inaudible. "It's not like that. S-Shin-chan's not like that._ I_ am not like that!" He slammed his fist on the door, panting heavily.

The man in the hallway snorted dismissively. "Oh? Getting a little feisty, Kazu? It's like I thought, you get unruly if I don't discipline you. Open the door already. If you behave I'll give you some cock as a reward. We can even let Shin-chan watch while I fuck your slut hole."

_Slut. _

_Slut._

_Slut. _

_Slut._

He bit his lip and tears started prickling at the corners of his eyes. "No! I…" he wanted to say something, to let Toujiro know he wasn't his property, but the poisonous words were now constricting his throat. He dug his nails into the palms of his hands, feeling that disgusting sensation creeping up his skin and getting that horrible urge to try to claw it away.

"Alright, I'll make this decision easier for you. You can open the door, come with me and I'll fill all your cunts with my dick, I know it's your favorite thing. Or you can play hard to get and I'll kick down this door, fuck you bloody on _Shin-chan's_ bed and make a nice mark on your slut face for the world to see."

His knees gave in from fear. He couldn't form any coherent thought anymore. All he could think about was the pain, and the darkness, and his scars, and his own screams. And the shame. All the shame he'd tried to bottle up and put away. Shame for letting himself become this messed up, pathetic shadow of who he'd once been. Shame for being seen by Shin-chan when he was at his worst: broken, pitiful, humiliated, dirty, disgusting.

"Please stop." He whimpered through his tears as he imagined how Shin-chan must've looked when he'd found him, remembered how disgusted he'd felt when he'd looked at his own reflection and couldn't find himself in it.

"Oh, don't play coy, Kazu. You worthless slut really think you can tell me what to do? I know you like it. You like the pain. You like it when I make you bleed. You like it when I tell you that you're a disgusting slut. Don't worry, I know all the things you like. Open the door and I'll give'em all to you."

_Disgusting. _

_Slut._

_Filthy. _

_Worthless whore._

He covered his ears, trying to block out the sound of those words, to no avail.

_What will Shin-chan say when he realizes what a filthy slut you are?_

_You're precious to me._

Takao slammed his fist against the door and gritted his teeth. What had happened to his resolve, his hope? After everything Shin-chan did for him, was he going to give up and let that man break him again? He couldn't just sit and cry and wait for Shin-chan to save him every time. If he was to start his life anew and get his peace and freedom back, he'd have to stand up for himself.

"NO!" he screamed, his voice hoarse. "Go away! You can't hurt me. You _won't_ hurt me again. You have no power over me!"

The door shook violently, most likely from a strong kick, and he heard Toujiro snarl and roar in the hallway.

"I see. So that's the game we're playing, _Ka-zu_." His voice punctuated each syllable of his name with viciousness. "You think this little door can protect you? You think I can't touch you while you're hiding in your precious Shin-chan's skirt? It would be rather unfortunate if something happened to Shin-chan, though, wouldn't it? Doctors get targeted by resentful ex-patients all the time. And that lovely shop his family owns… what a pity if some delinquents were to set it on fire when everyone's inside, don't you think so? All sorts of tragedies can happen so easily…"

Takao's voice got caught in his throat. He was threatening Shin-chan, and he was perfectly capable of going through with it, Takao knew. And even if Shin-chan had the support of Akashi, if anything happened to him or his family, it'd be too late. What if… what if… He didn't even want to think about it but if that happened, not even all the money and power in the world could make things right again. His chest clenched painfully, but even as he told himself to breathe, he could feel his resolve crashing and burning, and his legs started shaking again.

His hand reached for the door. If he had to choose between himself and Shin-chan the choice was obvious.

_Disgusting slut. _

_Slut._

_Slut._

_I'll keep you safe._

Words started making him dizzy, and his whole body trembled violently, his vision turned blurry.

_Filthy cunt. _

_Filthy. _

_Filthy. _

_Filthy._

_You are beautiful._

It was as if two voices were calling for him. His head was pounding, and the noise made him deaf.

_Who would want a disgusting, worthless whore like you?_

He thought about Shin-chan. Shin-chan, who had been so kind, so caring, who'd comforted and protected him, who held him close and scared his nightmares away; Shin-chan, so beautiful, so intelligent, so gentle, the person Takao loved most in the world…

_You're precious to me._

He could never let Toujiro lay a hand on him.

He slammed the door open, his fists clenched tight, his eyes ablaze in ire.

"I won't let you. I won't let you hurt him!"

Toujiro's face split into a sickening smirk. "See? Was that so hard? Now come here and I'll reward your dirty little cunt like you deserve." He stretched his arm to grab Takao's wrist, but the shorter man swatted him away, cringing away from the venomous touch.

"I already told you, you have no power over me. I won't let you."

The taller man clenched his fist and threw a fast punch to Takao's face, making him bite his tongue and draw out some blood. His cheek swelled and pounded in pain. Toujiro laughed and grabbed him by the collar, drawing him so close he could smell the alcohol in his breathe.

"And I said you're coming with me, you filthy whore, unless you want me to break you down in your boyfriend's door."

His skin was crawling with disgust upon feeling that man's hands on him. He gritted his teeth. No more. He was not going to let him control him with pain and fear. He'd allowed this to go on for too long. He spat blood on his attacker's face and took the moment of confusion to knee him in the groin. Toujiro let go as he howled in pain, and Takao took the chance to make a run for it. He wished he had his cellphone so he could call the police, but that not being the case, all he could do was run and hope his athletic build would give him even the slightest advantage.

When he was about to exit the building, he heard Toujiro's heavy steps coming down the hallway, hollering insults.

"I'M GONNA CATCH YOU AND I'M GONNA KILL YOU. STUPID FUCKING WHORE, YOU'LL REGRET THIS. I'M GONNA-"

The roars were suddenly cut by a loud thud, and, against his better instincts, Takao stopped in his tracks. He looked back, only to see Toujiro lying on the floor unconscious, and Midorima Shintarou standing there, his fist held up high, his emerald eyes burning with fury. And maybe he was riding a white horse, Takao wasn't really sure about that one.

* * *

Midorima panted heavily, trying to catch his breath. He'd felt that terrifyingly familiar chill going up his spine. Takao needed him. Last time he had been completely powerless, but this time, he wouldn't let that despicable man hurt Takao. He'd rushed out of the hospital without even telling anyone and raced all the way to his apartment, where he'd found Takao running away from the building as if the devil itself were chasing him, and that detestable Tozai Toujiro's voice coming from the doorway, horrible words spilling out of his mouth. His blood boiled and he saw red. Midorima couldn't hold back and before he could rein his emotions in, he'd struck a strong punch across that man's face, his jaw making a sickening crack.

It briefly crossed his mind that he had never actually punched anyone before. In fact, he couldn't recall a single instance of himself reacting violently to anything. He had always considered himself a man of words and rationality, rather than one to solve his problems with his fists. But with this man, this pile of filth, it was all different because there were no words to let out his anger, no rationality that would be enough to make this garbage pay for what he had done. And it was with great satisfaction that he felt his knuckles connecting to that man's jaw and hearing him roar in pain.

It wasn't enough, though. Not enough to atone for hurting the one he held most precious in the world. His vision blurred and all he could see was red as his fist kept crashing and cracking against that man's face. Again and again and again. His knuckles were covered in blood now, he couldn't feel the pain in his own fist, and that man wasn't moving. And it wasn't enough.

"Stop! Stop, Shin-chan, STOP!"

His eyes regained their focus and he turned to where the panicked voice had come from, to find Takao standing frozen on his spot, his eyes wide with confusion and fear. His left cheek was red and swollen, and there was a faint trail of blood on his mouth. The man on the floor didn't matter anymore. He rushed to his side and pulled him in to an impulsive embrace, thanking all the gods for letting him arrive on time.

"Takao! Takao…" he said softly, pulling away from the hug and cupping his uninjured cheek with one hand. "Are you alright? Did he hurt you?"

Takao was pulled out of his daze and his clear eyes focused on Midorima's emerald ones, and he felt a rush of emotions pour down on him that brought him to his knees. Fear and confusion, pain and anger, relief and gratitude, and he couldn't hold back the tears any longer. Midorima kneeled too and held him gently, leaning his raven head to his chest where he could feel his heartbeat. For some reason, this always seemed to calm him down.

He could hear a string of tender words, Midorima's voice whispering in his ear. _It's alright. You're safe. He can't hurt you._ And the world around him seemed to disappear, all that mattered was this warmth, this feeling of safety, and knowing everything would be okay.

* * *

The next few hours went by in a blur. Someone had called the police –perhaps a neighbor- and they'd taken Tozai into custody. Once Midorima regained some sense of self-awareness, he'd called Aomine, who met them at the police station and helped them through the process of submitting an official statement and having Takao's injuries examined and treated.

Much to Midorima's surprise, this time Takao didn't even hesitate to press charges. The look in his eyes was different, although his hands still trembled occasionally, his clear eyes sparkled with defiance and determination.

"Would you… would you stay with me? Please?" He'd asked a little dubiously, glancing briefly at Midorima as the officers told him they'd take his statement in a separate room.

"Of course."

He'd sat by Takao's side holding his hand for the two hours that the questioning lasted, barely ever opening his mouth and just listening to Takao's story. From time to time, he'd notice how his fists would clench so tight his knuckles turned white, furious at himself for never noticing all the pain Takao was going through and for having been so powerless to help him, and some other times, his stomach twisted in anger and disgust at hearing all the horrific things that man had put Takao through.

They took Midorima's statement afterwards, although there was not much he could say aside from mentioning all the times he'd suspected Takao was injured and about that nightmarish phone call. When they asked him to talk about his encounter with Tozai earlier, he found he could barely remember it at all, and if it weren't for the pain on his hands, he'd probably think the whole thing was a dream.

* * *

Midorima wasn't sure of how much time had passed when they came back to his apartment. Aomine, who had driven them back in his police car, exchanged a few words with his colleagues before approaching him with a tired expression and making a sign that meant Takao shouldn't listen to the conversation.

"I just got a message on the radio." He said, his brow scrunching in a displeased frown "That guy's all lawyered up. The company's giving him an army of those detestable corporate lawyers. I'm afraid they'll try to strike a deal to get out of this. They're even threatening to charge you for assault. That was dangerous, man, you could've killed him."

Midorima flexed his fingers, his hands swollen and in pain. "I would've." He said simply, almost regretful. He had no doubts that, had Takao not called out for him to stop, he would now be facing murder charges, and he probably wouldn't have felt remotely guilty about it. Not about the man that hurt Takao. He briefly wondered if he should feel scared of himself for thinking like that.

Aomine shook his head and decided to change the subject. "I've told the officer in charge to stall as much as he can, but I'm afraid he'll walk unless we can prove he killed the prime minister or something. Of course Takao's testimony should technically be enough to put him behind the bars for a long time, but you know those rich bastards, they think they can get away with anything and that's usually the case. He'll probably get bail and be back in the streets soon, at least until the trial."

Shintarou sighed. He knew that dealing with big powerful companies wouldn't be easy, and he'd made sure to have all the right weapons to come out victorious. That man would never lay a finger on Takao again.

"Could you try to stall a little longer? Akashi just called to say the Tozais are about to cave in. I suppose it's hard to stand against the threat of economic blockade." In any other circumstances, he would not feel right about using his friend's power, and such underhanded tactics to achieve his goals. But not this time. There was nothing he wouldn't do to make sure that man paid for what he'd done. "If you need physical evidence, my boss collected all sorts of samples from that day, I'll tell her to get in touch with you." His original plan had been to wait for Akashi to make sure that man couldn't use his family's influence to protect himself and then convince Takao that it was safe to press charges. Things hadn't progressed exactly as he had hoped for, but the end result would be the same no matter what.

"I'll see what I can do. I'll tell the officer in charge about it; I'm sure he'll hang in there a little longer if he knows Akashi will get rid of those goddamned lawyers and keep him from receiving bail."

"And I will be very grateful for that. I'm sorry to cause you so much trouble."

Aomine shrugged dismissively. "No biggie. I guess I would want hell and worse for anyone who hurt someone that's so important to me. My guys will be done soon, he'll need some peace and quiet; it's been a long day." He said, nodding in Takao's direction before exiting the apartment and shutting the door behind him.

Takao watched as the two former miracles talked, and it dawned on him everything that Shin-chan was doing for his sake, even going as far as to ask for his former comrades' help, something a prideful man like him would usually never do. The realization made him warm and fuzzy inside, and for a moment, he even allowed himself a hesitant smile.

Aomine left and Midorima came back to sit beside him on the couch. He handed Takao a new bag of ice –of which he'd already used four to diminish the swelling on his cheek- and for a moment, seemed to hesitate on what to say.

Kazunari pressed the bag against his skin and winced from the coldness on his bruised face.

"I'm sorry that I couldn't get here sooner. I couldn't stop him from hurting you again." Midorima mumbled painfully.

Takao looked at him and managed to pull off a small smile. "You've got nothing to apologize for. I… I think I needed to face him on my own… to fight for my own freedom, I guess?" he couldn't really explain it, but he felt so liberated now. Even if Toujiro came back to torment him, he felt that he wasn't afraid of him anymore.

He tentatively grabbed Shintarou's hand, softly gliding his thumb over the back of its palm, his eyes resting on the torn skin of the knuckles. "I'm sorry… that you had to do this… you're a doctor, your hands are very important. You shouldn't hurt them over something like this."

Shintarou's hands squirmed away from Takao's touch and he twisted them, holding instead both of his friend's pale hands in his. He looked into Takao's clear eyes sternly. "Between you and my hands, which do you think is more important?" he breathed.

Kazunari's eyes widened and then, suddenly they got glazed over with tears. He squeezed at the larger hands holding his, carefully, as if trying not to injure them further. And then, without him noticing it, his lips started to curve upwards, slowly, faintly and Midorima stared in awe as the gleaming smile he had come to love appeared on his friend's face. He hadn't seen him smile like that in such a long time, he briefly wondered if he was dreaming. But he wasn't and in spite of the wounds, the bruises, the dark circles under the eyes, Takao looked breathtakingly beautiful once the smile reached his lovely clear eyes, making them sparkle like stars.

He'd heard somewhere (perhaps in one of his sister's Disney movies) that the flower that blooms in adversity was the most rare and beautiful of them all.

Takao's smile was that flower.

**To be continued**

I may or may not be in the middle of binge-watching CSI (Las Vegas version, the others suck) in the past few months and that may or may not have influenced some parts of this chapter. Anyway, it is finally the time for some comeuppance, so I hope you guys are satisfied with it. I plead guilty of Akashi-ex-Machina, hopefully you'll forgive me for it. I'm usually not a fan of Policeman!Aomine (I'm usually not a fan of policemen in general whoops), but it was convenient for this particular case, sorry Aho. Since I'm not knowledgeable of Japan's justice system and how deeply it may be influenced by rape culture (would it be enough with Takao's testimony to convict his rapist without physical evidence? Heck, could the case be dismissed because 1) the victim is a male and 2) the rapist was their boyfriend?), we won't be going too deep into that process, we'll just assume we live in an ideal world where this kind of shit is not tolerated and all will be fine.

This chapter was actually one of the last I thought about, because I didn't want Takao to be helpless and always dependent on Midorima to save him. (in the original draft, this final confrontation never happened and Akashi just made Toujirou disappear with the magic of money). I wanted Takao to have a chance to face his demons and free himself. Since early on in the story, he had this determination of fighting back and not waiting to be saved, and I wanted to honor that wish of his, confront his abuser and break his own shackles. Which is not to say he's now magically cured, he went through a traumatic experience and it's left behind big ugly wounds, but I thought this would be an important step in his healing process, a step _he_ needed to take.

Anyway, sorry for the huge notes, I just felt I had to clarify some of the themes I'm working with. Thanks a lot to all of you for all the amazing positive messages, they're really encouraging and I hope you continue to enjoy this story. Talk to me on tumblr (liamatsuoka) I'm always in for raving about MidoTaka


	14. I'm not ready yet

Just a quick note before we get started. If you follow me on tumblr you already know that my financial situation is dire to say the least. I've been running a campaign (I can't link it here due to AO3 policies) for a couple months to no avail, so my next step was to try making fanfiction commissions. So I would like to know if any of you, dear friends, would be interested in commissioning fanfiction to me. Please let me know in the comments. If enough people show interest I'll put together a proper commissioning post on my tumblr and work out the details, but I want to know if anyone's actually interested before getting my hopes up.

On to the chapter now!

**Chapter 13**

**I'm not ready yet.**

The next few days were a little bit hectic. As expected, the Tozai family gave in to the pressure from the Akashi group, leaving Toujiro to defend himself with his own means. The ordeal was soon discovered by the media, and the head of the family had to offer a press conference in which he officially disowned Toujiro and declared all his ties to the company completely severed. With his bank accounts frozen, no protection from the family and a soiled reputation, he was denied from bail and was transferred to a correctional facility to wait for his trial. According to Aomine and the officer in charge of the case –a fiercely righteous man with the ridiculously appropriate name of Seigino Mikata- it would probably take a few months before the trial actually took place, but their case and evidence was solid.

"There is no way that man will walk free." Officer Seigino had said with utmost confidence one day. Takao had felt as if he had been born anew when he heard the news. Free. He was really free now.

Little by little, Takao's life seemed to be regaining a semblance of normalcy. Once the bruises on his face faded away, he could finally go back to work, and Kagetora-san welcomed him back with kindness and understanding. He had returned to school too, and he was finally up to date with all the classes he'd missed. He still couldn't shower at the gym for fear of showing the scars on his body, especially the ones on his back. He didn't want or need anyone's looks of pity or horror. He wanted to believe the marks too would fade away with time and then he would be able to put all this behind him, but in truth he knew some of those scars –both in his body and in his heart- would stay with him for the rest of his life. His injuries meant he couldn't play basketball yet, but he was in good enough condition to coach the mini basketball team, and the tournament would get started soon, which gave him a sense of purpose.

Now that Toujiro was no longer a threat, he'd tried to go back to his apartment, but the moment he'd stepped inside he'd been plagued with all the memories and nightmares he didn't want, so he was still freeloading at Midorima's while he found himself a new place to stay.

"I'm home." Midorima said mechanically as he shut the door behind him.

"Welcome back." Takao responded.

They had somehow fallen into an amazingly domestic routine, to which none of them tried to give too much thought, fearing it would break the crystal bubble they'd managed to build around this little space they shared.

Midorima collapsed on the couch. Now that Takao was getting better and Tozai was off the streets, he had no more excuses to keep the dreamy day-shift-only work schedule, and now he had to pay off all the free hours and days he'd taken (although he still tried to be home at night because he knew Takao's nightmares hadn't completely disappeared, and that waking up alone after one such nightmare was horrible for him). Dr. Ienaga had been very understanding, but she still had him going on 40-hour shifts and taking charge of the extremely stressful ER –she'd always seem to favor that as means of punishment-. He tried not to show his exhaustion because it would always prompt an apology from Takao, and he seriously couldn't take such apologies from someone who was going through such terrible things.

"Oh, there is a Michael Jordan special program on. Do you want to watch it? He used to be your hero, as far as I remember."

Takao hopped on the couch excitedly. "Not 'used to'. That man's still my aspiration in life!" he chirped, his eyes already glued to the screen.

"Ho? So you aspire to drop out of your specialty when you're at the peak of your career only to try something new and fail miserably at it?"

Kazunari shot him a deadly glare and stuck out his tongue defiantly. "I won't give you an autograph when I get a movie with the Looney Toons."

Midorima leaned back and allowed a small smile to grace his lips. It gave him a lot of peace to see that Takao was slowly going back to his usual self. He smiled more often, he laughed more often, and he'd even tease him occasionally. In the three months since they had reconnected Midorima had seen Takao forcing countless unpleasant smiles on his face, brooding, hiding his pain, always looking miserable or afraid, crying or screaming in terror, but now he finally seemed to be regaining his default joyfulness, and it made Midorima's heart swell.

"Oh, I just finished making curry-rice, could you bring me some please? You should have some too, I bet you eat nothing but trash food at the hospital." Takao commented absentmindedly, apparently hypnotized by the screen, even if it was on commercial break. Midorima felt slightly tempted to point this fact out, but Takao looked so endearing with the excitement plastered over his face that he couldn't find it in him to protest.

When he brought the food back, they were airing highlights from the 1984 Olympics, when Jordan had earned his first gold medal. Needless to say, Takao was literally skipping on the couch, even though Midorima knew for fact that he'd watched those games at least half a billion times.

"Oh my god the Finals against Spain!" he squealed excitedly. "Damn, he's so amazing! Even after breaking his foot and being out of commission for a whole year, he scored 49 points in his return game! Forty-nine!"

Midorima frowned. _He_ had scored 49 points and more in many games, and Takao wasn't lost to the world watching _him_ on TV. Although, to be fair, back in their Shuutoku days, Takao would smile at him after one of those games and peep delightfully and talk his ear off recalling all of their good plays. Takao had never failed to remark how much he loved _their_ basketball.

They watched in silence for what felt like a really long time. Well, relative silence, since Takao would squeak or squeal in delight from time to time, or point at whatever was going on in the screen and blabber trivia facts about Michael Jordan that Midorima had heard him spew about a hundred million times. He didn't point that out either, too entranced watching Kazunari laugh and smile and jump in his seat and thinking that this moment was absolutely perfect and how he wished he could freeze it and never let it end. Midorima looked up to see Takao's clear eyes glued to the screen as the host talked about the Olympic team vs NBA All-Stars game in which Jordan had scored 24 points and sighed, his heart clenching with the thought of having to give _this_ up.

In one of many excited outbursts, Takao got a small splotch of curry on his cheek, but didn't seem to notice. Still entranced and driven by some primal instinct, Midorima reached out to wipe it away with his thumb. Takao jerked and turned to look at him startled. Suddenly, he realized they were sitting really close, and he felt his cheeks heat up. Kazunari's expression seemed to mirror his own, as his pale skin acquired a strong scarlet tone.

A small, nervous smile graced his lips. "C-can you imagine it, Shin-chan? An Olympic team versus the NBA All-Stars? With Michael Jordan? That must have been the best match ever! I wish I could've seen it" He said, his smile growing little by little, the blush never abandoning his cheeks, with his clear eyes locked with Midorima's emerald ones.

He was beautiful. Again and again, Midorima was reminded of how beautiful Takao was and how much he loved him. Why did he have to give him up again? He couldn't quite remember, and whatever it was, it seemed insignificant compared to how warm and how beautiful and how close he was; oh so close…

* * *

Takao was entranced. There was something about Shin-chan's fingers lingering on his cheek and the intensity of his gaze that made him unable to look away or think at all. He was so close and getting closer…

A familiar warmth met his lips. Half-lidded crystal eyes met hesitant emeralds before shutting down completely. The feeling was soft, gentle and nostalgic. The fingers on his cheek traveled to the back of his head, threading in between his raven locks and pulling him forward. A kiss. A kiss from Shin-chan. It had been so long and yet, it suddenly felt like seven years hadn't passed. Because this kiss was so natural, so right, so good… His body remembered this kiss too, and it responded accordingly, without having to think about it, gently moving his lips against the opposing pair.

Shin-chan's wet tongue licked his lips tentatively. "_Is it okay?"_ he seemed to be asking, and God, it was so much more than okay, and he'd wanted this for so long, how could it not be okay? He parted his lips compliantly and allowed the guest in, meeting him with his own tongue, dancing together a slow, wet waltz, tasting each other, rediscovering all those sensations that had seemed long beyond reach, drinking from each other's breath.

When no more oxygen could be found in their lungs, they parted briefly, just a few milliseconds, enough to get air into their system, but not so much as to break off that spark, that spontaneous connection they'd been yearning for so long. This was a dance they'd known once and had thought forgotten, and yet it seemed so fresh and natural now it was hard to believe they'd gone without it for such a long time.

Midorima started sucking on Takao's lower lip, earning himself a muffled moan. Kazunari's small hands bunched up on the front of his shirt, holding on as if for dear life and pulling him even closer, slowly drowning in the passion. His body started heating up so fast his thoughts were getting muddled by the heat.

Suddenly, Takao felt a large hand pushing his shirt upwards and splaying on his bare chest while leaning him down on the couch. Memories of large, rough hands pushing him down started flooding him which set off the alarms on his brain and he shot his eyes open. He forgot what was happening and who he was looking at and just started kicking and flailing, trying to flee to safety again.

"NO! DON'T TOUCH ME!"

Midorima jumped back and off the couch, startled, and he covered his mouth in horror when he realized what he had done. Takao's eyes were blurred and watery, his body was trembling uncontrollably and he had curled into himself defensively, trying to protect himself from the fear that kept haunting him. A few seconds later, his eyes regained focus and he looked up at the taller man, his face contorting into mortification.

"I… I'm sorry, I…" Takao's voice came out thin, breathless, pained.

He'd screwed up. He'd screwed up so goddamned badly he wanted to die. They'd had a moment and he'd completely ruined it.

"No, no, wait, Takao. It's not your fault, don't apologize. I shouldn't have… I'm sorry. Please forgive me, I was careless." He'd gotten so carried away by the sheer bliss of that moment that he'd forgotten about Takao's wounds, not only the physical ones, but the ones left behind in his mind, which were the most terrifying and painful, the ones that made him wake up crying and screaming in terror, the ones that made him sink into a world of nightmares even when he was awake. He had been too caught up in his own hopes and desires to think about the man he claimed to love. He felt like trash. "I… I'll leave if you want me to." He said, not daring to look him in the eye.

"N-n-n-no!" Takao panicked, grabbing Shin-chan's wrist to keep him from leaving. He'd had him. For one fleeting, beautiful instant, Shin-chan had been his again and he was going to lose him because of his disgusting past that wouldn't let go of him. "I-I don't want you to leave… It's more s-scary to be alone. I'm j-j-just not… ready… not yet." His eyes were locked on the ground, too embarrassed to dare look up. He tugged on Shin-chan's wrist, asking him to come back and sit beside him, to which he complied without much resistance.

"I… uhm…" he looked up tentatively, and he noticed Shin-chan looked as mortified as he was, which only made him feel worse. "J-j-just… k-k-kissing's okay…" he stuttered, his hands clenching into fists. He wanted it back, that moment. He wanted more moments. And he wanted Shin-chan so badly it hurt.

"You don't have to… force yourself. You shouldn't feel bad about it. I was the one who didn't think things properly. It's obvious that… t-this would be difficult." He didn't want Takao to think he was forced to give in to his wishes, either by some sort of twisted gratitude, or by fear of getting hurt again. He would never, ever be like the man who'd hurt Takao, and he didn't want Takao to think that he would.

"I'm not forcing myself." Kazunari blurted, finally looking up to meet Shin-chan's eyes, trying to convey his determination. He couldn't really explain it, but there had been something about that kiss, about the gentle touch of fingers on his cheeks, the slow dance of their lips pressed together, something that felt nostalgic, yet sweet and just right. When they were just kissing, even if his eyes were closed, even if his mind was a little foggy, he had no doubts of who was there with him, and how safe and happy he was with that person "It made me… happy. I want this." _I want you. I want __**us**__._

Midorima blushed and Takao could still see doubts in his eyes, so before he had any time to respond, he laced his arms around his neck and pressed their lips together again, with less doubts and more enthusiasm than the previous time. Shin-chan seemed to hesitate a little at first, but finally he too held Takao by the waist and pulled him closer as he parted his lips to let Takao's tongue in. It was as if their dance had never been interrupted, and everything was right with the world again.

**To be continued.**

Well, it was about time to give these boys a little break (something like that at least) before we enter the last third of the story. But like everything, this is a slow healing process, so it's not going to be just a magical bygones be bygones and stuff.

At some point in my life I convinced myself that Takao was a major basketball otaku and a huge fan of Michael Jordan. I think I've even mentioned it in two or three of my stories

Seigi no mikata (正義の味方) literally means "ally of justice", you may often hear this term in shonen anime referring to the hero. This officer's name is a play on this, but it's written 正木野実形, which still has a ridiculous amount of righteousness and correctness in it meaning . Don't ask me why I focus on this kind of meaningless details.

Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed it. Thanks a lot for your comments, although I do wonder if anyone was dissatisfied with the previous chapter, seeing how little response it got. But anyway, let me know what you think, and thanks for reading!


	15. You're supposed to wake up

Chapter 14

**You're supposed to wake up**

When he was a kid, Takao had often dreamed of how his life would turn out in the end. He fantasized about how happy he would be, and how every day would feel like a blessing. Yet none of those fantasies seemed even close to the absolute bliss he felt now.

"I'm home!" he chanted merrily after a long, yet extremely satisfying day of work, school and mini basketball. He received no response, so he assumed Shin-chan would still be at the hospital. Hopefully he'd come back soon, Takao didn't remember seeing him since yesterday morning.

He waltzed into the living room and turned on the TV. They would air a special report on the upcoming mini basketball tournament, in which the kids he was coaching would participate. His attention was driven away from the television when he heard a displeased grunt that sounded like a complaint. He turned around and found Midorima lying on the sofa, twisting in his sleep in hopes of protecting his face from the light.

Takao smiled. Shin-chan hadn't even taken off his glasses before collapsing on the couch, a sign of how exhausted he was. He turned off the TV and looked at the sleeping man lovingly. He gently pushed his green bangs away from his face so he could appreciate how beautiful he looked, eyes closed, long eyelashes, and serene expression on his face. Midorima sighed and leaned into the touch and Takao couldn't hold back so he leaned in to kiss him on the mouth. Shintarou seemed to stir for a moment, but then continued sleeping as if nothing had happened.

"Oi, Shin-chan, you're supposed to wake up when you get a True Love's Kiss." Takao pouted childishly.

"Sleeping Beauty didn't do 32 hours of Emergency Room, though." Midorima grumbled, still 70 percent asleep.

Takao kneeled by the couch and rained butterfly kisses over Midorima's cheeks and down to his chin. "C'mon, Shin-chan. I passed by the grocery store and bought stuff to make nabe, you need to get enough nutrients with that awful schedule of yours. You can go back to sleep after you've had dinner. You can't sleep on the clothes you've been wearing for two days, can you?"

Instead of responding to Takao's reasons, they seemed to have lulled Midorima back into sleep. Kazunari frowned. "Perhaps this Sleeping Beauty needs double power of True Love to wake up. Should I kiss you again, just to make sure?" he whispered softly, his lips ghosting over the shell of Midorima's ear.

"Perhaps you should." Shin-chan grumbled, and Takao caught a slight smirk on his lips.

"Heeeh." He grinned mischievously. "Shin-chan's turned into quite a smartass." He mused before leaning in to kiss Shin-chan's lips once again. When he was about to pull away, Midorima held him by the back of the head and pulled him in as he started to kiss back. When they broke the kiss, and Takao was sure that Midorima was mostly awake now, he grabbed his wrist and yanked him up so they were both standing now.

"You're such a bad boy, Shin-chan, taking advantage of my good disposition to get your wicked way with me." He teased, poking him on the nose with one finger. "Come on, the bath's ready, you can go while I make dinner; it'll help you relax. Just don't fall asleep in the tub."

Midorima grunted something that may or may not have been a "sure", and before leaving, he circled Takao's waist with one arm and leaned forward to steal one more kiss. "You know what they say: third time's the charm." He said matter-of-factly and left for the bathroom.

Certainly, 'rosy-colored ultimate bliss' had nothing on how perfect Takao's life was right now.

* * *

"Hey, Shin-chan, have you considered going back to Oha-Asa?"

Midorima looked at him and raised an eyebrow quizzically. The implicit question '_where did that even come from?_' was pretty obvious in his confused expression.

"Well, you know, it's your character trait, being a horoscope freak, I mean. It's just weird being around you and not seeing you with a giant bear wood carving or something."

The horoscope freak in question frowned unamused. He hadn't told Takao the reason he'd stopped listening to the horoscopes, and he didn't really want to discuss it. Oha-Asa had predicted good luck for Cancer the day Takao broke up with him. "_You will face a difficult decision, but you will come out with the best solution in the end._" She'd said. That had not been the case. If Oha-Asa had made a mistake concerning the most important thing in Midorima's life, he saw no reason to keep trusting her.

"I grew up." He said finally, hoping to put an end to the conversation.

"Oh." Takao mumbled and smiled nervously. "I just… I listened to the horoscope by chance. Oha-Asa said it would be a bad luck day for Cancer so I… I brought you your lucky item. You know, you used to make me hunt for your lucky items before, so I guess the habit just stuck with me." He handed him an orange frog toy. "It's not Kerosuke but I guess it should do, haha."

Takao hadn't told Midorima that he'd picked up the habit of listening to Oha-Asa ever since Toujiro started hitting him. It had worked for Shin-chan all those years ago, maybe it would work for him, he'd told himself. And sometimes it did; when Oha-Asa said Scorpio had the best luck, Toujiro would leave on a business trip. The day his path had crossed with Shin-chan again, Oha-Asa had said "_You will find something that you lost and it will make you very happy_." Although he hadn't been happy that day -re-encountering a soon to be married Shin-chan- he couldn't say he wasn't happy right now, so Oha-Asa had been right then too.

Midorima grabbed the orange frog and looked at it for a moment, then sighed and put it in his pocket. Maybe if it was Takao bringing Oha-Asa back into his life, it meant it was for the best.

"I guess it would do no harm to carry it around. I have an important surgery today." He said as if it was of little importance, but the truth was that he was awfully nervous and it gave him a sort of confidence to have his lucky item at hand, especially because it came from Takao.

"The words you're looking for are 'thank you'. Seriously Shin-chan, I can't believe you're still such a tsundere." Takao teased. He stood on his tiptoes to kiss him on the cheek. "Good luck today."

Midorima nodded. "I'm off then." He said as he closed the door behind him.

* * *

"I'm home." Midorima called, as was their routine now.

"Welcome home, Shin-chan!" Takao came to greet him cheerfully. "You're early today, I didn't expect to see you until tomorrow."

"The surgery took a lot longer than expected, and the chief resident said I could take some rest now. Besides, it's not like I have 30-hour shifts every day. It _is_ against the law, you know?"

Takao grinned and kissed him on the cheek. "That's a very good law then." It was just then that he noticed the white plastic bag Midorima was holding. "What's that? Did you bring me a present?" he asked jokingly.

To his surprise, Midorima blushed and looked away. "It's not a present for _you_ specifically. I just thought that… well, your mini basket tournament is starting in a few days, right? And you have work and school… You shouldn't exhaust yourself cooking every day, and I can't really cook, so I bought something on my way here" he pushed his glasses up his nose and handed the bag to Takao, still trying to pass it off as something insignificant and failing miserably at it.

Takao took the plastic bag and peeked inside. His hawk eyes lit up with delight. "Shin-chan, I love you!" he squealed, throwing his arms around his neck and crashing their lips together in a clumsy kiss. Seriously, he just couldn't deal with Shin-chan's tsundere cuteness. As if he could just believe that Shin-chan would bring _kimchi_ –Takao's favorite food- for dinner just by chance. "I'm going to heat this up, you sit down and wait for it." He chirped, pushing a still awfully embarrassed Midorima towards the dining room.

Once they were seated and eating, there wasn't much conversation going, mostly because Takao was too busy moaning in joy with every bite. "This is awesome, Shin-chan. It's like, the best I've ever had. Where's it from?" he asked in a rare moment in which he didn't have anything in his mouth.

"A colleague recommended it." Midorima replied simply, a blush spreading over his cheeks anew.

Kazunari smiled, finding the vision much too endearing. He wanted to pounce Shin-chan, and ravish him, and show him what his adorableness did to him, but as soon as the thought crossed his mind, he remembered he still couldn't do it. He'd been trying so hard to get rid of the nightmares, and horrible terrors that being touched would trigger on him, but it had all been useless so far. Shin-chan had already told him to stop trying to force the process, but it just made him anxious. He had no doubts that Shin-chan wanted more intimacy than just hugs and kisses, and he wanted it too. It didn't make sense to him. When they were younger, they had made love many times. Shin-chan's touch (or at least what he remembered it felt like) was nothing like the one in his nightmares, so why was his body still rejecting it?

Every day he would look at himself in the mirror to see how the scars were slowly fading away, and that would give him a moment of solace. But then he'd look at the words on his back, and those didn't seem to be disappearing at all. What if they never did? What if he was never cured? What if he was never able to get intimate with Shin-chan because of those nightmares? Would Shin-chan grow tired, run out of patience and leave him?

He shook his head, trying to push those thoughts to the back of his mind. He should be happy with what he had now. Shin-chan would wait for him, he knew. There was no rush.

"Is something wrong?"

Midorima's voice brought him back to reality and he realized he had been spacing out, staring at his _kimchi_ as if he were trying to discern the truths of the universe somewhere in its spicy sauce. He looked up to meet Shin-chan's concerned emerald eyes and he smiled, hoping to ease his worries away.

"It's nothing, don't worry Shin-chan. I was just thinking… well, you know, the mini basket thing is on Sunday and the kids have trained a lot. D'you think you could get some time off to see the game? We could go have dinner afterwards." _Kind of like a date_, he wanted to say, but for some reason the words didn't leave his mouth. "Some of the kids are your fans y'know, your Generation of Miracles and the Vorpal Swords have become a sort of legend now. They'd be delighted if you came."

Shin-chan was clearly not expecting that question, but he surprisingly didn't take long to reply. "Sure. If _you_ want me to go."

Ah. For someone who used to be so dense, Shin-chan seemed to be getting good at seeing right through him recently. It was kind of scary, to be honest. It was usually him trying to translate what Shin-chan actually wanted from the tsundere way in which he said it; now that it was the other way around, the feeling was a little strange.

"Geez, Shin-chan, when did you ever get good at reading people?" he chuckled, feeling a little embarrassed that his true intention had been discovered.

Midorima didn't respond, but instead he shot him a curious gaze and quirked his eyebrow as if trying to say "_You're such an idiot_", and Takao had to laugh.

* * *

The doorbell rang and Takao went to get it. He opened the door without even checking who it was, even if experience should've taught him how dangerous that could be, and almost got pushed down to the ground by something that looked and felt a lot like a typhoon. A flurry of red and designer clothes, the clacking of high heels, the scent of expensive perfume and a high-pitched voice.

"Oh my, Kazu-chan! Shin-chan never told me you were here! How are you doing? I heard what happened with Tou-chan, I still can't believe it! "

Kanako kept blabbering stuff, but Takao's brain had tuned out by that point. Why was she here? Didn't Shin-chan call off the engagement? They hadn't explicitly talked about it, but Takao had thought it had been somewhat implicit given how they'd been living like lovey-dovey newlyweds for two weeks now. This had to be a misunderstanding, right? Shin-chan wouldn't kiss him and tell him how precious he was if he were still engaged.

"W-what are you doing here?" Takao heard Midorima's voice, but he was still frozen solid on his spot and he felt he wasn't even part of this world anymore.

"So mean, Shin-chan. I know you told me not to contact you in a while, but the wedding is in _one month_ and you're not picking up the phone! We have a rehearsal scheduled for Sunday!"

Takao waited to hear Shin-chan say something like "But I already told you the wedding is off." His heartbeats were so loud he could hear them thumping in his ears. Each second that ticked off felt like an eternity.

Shin-chan didn't say anything and Takao's bubble of bliss came crashing down on him so hard he could barely keep himself standing. Midorima hadn't called off the marriage. He'd never intended to.

**To be continued.**

What, did you really think I was done being unnecessarily cruel to my precious baby Kazu? Joke's on you, my friends, I'm a terrible human being and I have a pathological need to make my darling boys cry. I wanted to give them a little more lovey-dovey domestic bliss before everything went down the drain again, just to remind you how beautiful they are together.

This chapter's title is of course related to Shin-chan receiving true love's kiss, but also to how Takao is forced to wake up from his illusions by the harsh reality of the situation.

I must confess these handful of chapters were also part of an experiment. Much like Takao got so caught up with everything that happened –the trauma first, the healing process, and their happy lovey dovey life later- that he pretty much forgot about the wedding, I was wondering if you guys would've forgotten too, but you didn't lol. Pretty much everyone asked me if I was gonna leave the wedding as a plothole lol, did you really think I would pass up the opportunity to make things more painful? I'm a terrible person.

Thanks a lot for all the comments, I was very happy with everyone's positive reactions to the kiss scene. I hope you continue to enjoy (and suffer) with this, please let me know your opinions!


	16. One Hundred and Six

**Chapter 15**

**One hundred and six**

"Takao, wait, I can explain!" Midorima yelled in panic. How had everything gone so wrong, so suddenly?

"Oh, there's nothing to explain, I understood the situation perfectly." Takao snapped, rapidly shoving his scarce possessions into a backpack, fully intending to storm out of this place and never come back. He was done with this shit. Done with having hopes and giving Midorima second or third or millionth chances and getting his heart broken over and over again. Done, done, done.

"Please, listen to me, you don't understand!" he grabbed Takao's elbow, trying to stop him from packing anymore.

Kazunari shot him a cold, angry glare. Midorima had never seen him look like that. "Fine, then. What is it that I don't understand? The part where you're still getting married, or the part where you expected me to think that was a-okay? What is it, _Midorima_?" he asked, his voice venomous with spite.

"I-it's not that simple, I…" This was wrong. So wrong. Takao was calling him by his last name again. He was losing him. He was losing Takao _again_, just like he'd lost him seven years ago, and the fear made his chest clench in pain and his throat go dry.

Takao yanked his arm away and turned to face him, his eyes burning with anger. "But it _is_ extremely simple, you'll see. Do you love me? Do you want to be with me?"

"I do! Of course I do! But I-" How could Takao even think that he didn't love him? He was scrambling for words that could somehow fix this, but his brain was in such confusion he could hardly breathe.

"But what? This is the fucking problem, and it's been all along. You haven't changed at all from back then!" he had been stupid to think anything would be different now. In the end, he'd just romanticized the memories of his relationship with Midorima because they seemed so much nicer than Toujiro's violence, but the reality was that it would've never worked because Midorima was incapable of making his own decisions.

"How do you expect it to be any different? You never told me what the hell happened that day, you just stormed off!" Midorima started to get angry now. Just like before, Takao was just screaming at him without even telling him what was wrong, as if he was just looking for an excuse to leave him, like he'd done seven years ago.

Takao was now blind with rage. "Oh I DID fucking tell you, you just didn't want to listen!"

* * *

He remembered that day as if it had been yesterday. He was supposed to meet Midorima in Akihabara, they had planned to have a date while looking for Shin-chan's lucky item (a Beach Queen model figure). Strangely, the boy in question was already ten minutes late, a very rare thing for a meticulous guy like him. Takao was about to call him, worried that something had gone wrong, when Shin-chan finally showed up, lacking breathe from running, which in turn made Takao 'awwww' mentally, thinking of his cute boyfriend rushing to meet him.

"I apologize for the delay, my father was holding me back."

Takao cocked his head in curiosity. Shin-chan wasn't particularly close with his father, the man was always away on business, trying to turn his local commercial kingdom into a large-scale empire. Takao himself had only seen the man about half a dozen times, and that was saying something, considering how often he had dinner at the Midorima household. "Did something happen?"

Shin-chan huffed in annoyance and produced a yellow envelope from his bag. Takao looked at the contents and his eyes widened.

"An _omiai_?" So Shin-chan's father wanted to set him up for marriage? His heart clenched. "You didn't tell your father that you're already seeing someone?" he knew Shin-chan couldn't just tell his very conservative parents that he was gay and dating another guy, but surely he could've implied… "When is it, anyway?"

"Next Saturday. I'm afraid I won't make it to watch the beginning of the playoffs like we had agreed."

Well, having to cancel that plan stung a little (especially because watching basketball in Takao's bedroom _always_ ended with both of them naked and tangled with each other in bed and it was just wonderful) but there was nothing they could do about it. Takao understood that, even if Shin-chan intended to reject the proposal, it was at least polite to show up to the meeting and properly apologize to the family.

"Don't sweat it; it's something you've got to do. It's okay, I trust that you'll turn her down properly."

There was an eerie silence following that statement and it took Takao aback. He looked up to find Shin-chan wasn't facing him, and that his expression was stricken with regret.

"You _are_ going to turn her down, right?"

Surely Midorima didn't intend to get married to a random girl he just met. He didn't even like girls, for that matter! Didn't they already promise to move in together when they graduated?

But Midorima didn't look up. He just stayed silent.

"Oi, hold on. You're not seriously considering on marrying some girl your father picked, are you?" his heart started beating so fast with fear he thought it would burst any minute. It was as if the noises of the world had shut down so he could listen to Shin-chan's answer.

"My father has expectations of me as his first-born son and heir. I… I can't disappoint him…"

The words cut through the silence and Takao's heart like a sharp blade.

"Are… are you breaking up with me?" Takao's eyes started to glaze over with tears.

Shintarou looked up, startled. "No! Not at all. That's not what I-"

"Then why won't you turn down the marriage?"

"I-I can't…"

"Of course you can! Just tell your father that you're not interested, that's not so difficult! I know you can't tell him about us, but that doesn't mean you can't refuse the marriage, there's a ton of excuses you could use!" Takao's blood started to boil when he got no response "So you _do_ intend to marry her." What was up with Shin-chan? It was a simple yes-or-no question. He couldn't marry the girl and be with Takao at the same time. The world didn't work like that. _Takao_ didn't work like that.

"Nothing's decided yet." Midorima had said, and Takao wondered if he really thought that was a good response to anything.

"But it will be. Maybe not with this girl, but I'm sure your father has a good set of candidates for his _heir_. What will happen then?"

Midorima was so confused. He didn't understand why Takao was so upset, or why he was asking so many questions. This was very difficult for him too, and he wasn't ready to think about all that just yet. "I-I don't know…"

Takao's throat was constricted. He couldn't believe that Shin-chan would just give up on what they had for his father's wishes. "Then what… what about _us_?" he choked on his tears, his voice coming out as a strained, painful whimper.

Shin-chan didn't meet his eyes. "I don't know! I…"

He couldn't listen to this anymore. "You don't know? It seems pretty clear to me. _We_ are through. Over. THE END." He turned away and dashed off, not caring in which direction he was headed.

He never turned back. Midorima didn't chase after him.

* * *

"What was the big idea? Did you intend to get married and keep me aside like your personal little slut to entertain you? Did you think I would be okay with just being your dirty mistress?" he was crying now too. Fuck Midorima Shintarou. Fuck how he could still hurt him in spite of everything. And fuck him for making him believe he had changed. Obviously, when he'd said Takao was more important than the wedding, it had been just hyperbole.

"That wasn't it! What did you expect me to do? Go against my father and the family?"

"I expected you to _fight_ for us! To show you fucking CARED!" His voice was now cracked and broken, his eyes stung from crying and he wanted to get out of here and forget any of this had ever happened. "And instead you just… you just gave up… you gave up back then, and you're doing it again now!"

Of course he didn't want Midorima to break relationships with his family, he knew how much he loved them. All he ever hoped was that he were willing to face them and confront their outdated ideas, if not for Takao, at least for _his_ own happiness. He never even expected that Midorima would come out to his family, he knew how strict they were. He'd just… he'd just hoped that their love was important enough for Shin-chan to fight for it; but that, much like everything else, had been but vain optimism.

Midorima bit his lip. Why couldn't he have Takao without disappointing his father? "It's just… it's complicated. M-my father… you wouldn't understand."

Yeah, now Takao had had it. "Why, forgive this lousy commoner for not getting the tribulations of you aristocrats, Midorima-sama." He spat out, making a mocking reverence and pushed Midorima aside, heading for the door.

"No! Takao, I didn't… Wait!" Midorima stopped him again by the wrist. He was crying too. Everything was so difficult and confusing. There had to be some words that could make things right again, but he couldn't find them and instead kept making the mess bigger and bigger every time he opened his mouth, and _he was losing Takao_ _again_, and he was desperate.

Takao took a deep breath and once again he looked back to meet teary emerald eyes. This was it. The last chance. He would not have his heart broken again, not by Midorima Shintarou and his absurd sense of inflexible duty. He'd ask the question once and that would be it. No more opportunities.

"Are you going to marry her?"

The silence was thick and made it hard to breathe. He saw something crack in the back of Midorima's tearful eyes. His lips quivered, but no answer came past them.

And then Midorima looked down and his grip on Takao's wrist loosened.

That was all the answer he needed.

"I see."

He left the apartment and no other word was uttered. He slammed the door shut behind him and stopped on his tracks, frozen, his knees wobbling, his heart aching so much he wondered if it could physically break from the pain. _I'll count to five_, he told himself, _and if he doesn't come_…

One... two… three...

Okay, five seconds was too little…

Six… Seven… Eight...

Just five, five more seconds…

Fifteen… Sixteen...

Last time he hadn't waited…

Twenty-six...

Maybe if he had waited a little last time, it would have been different…

Twenty-seven…

Maybe this time would be different…

Twenty-eight…

_Please…_

Twenty-nine…

_Please be different…_

Fifty-eight…

Maybe if he waited one more second…

Fifty-nine…

He was biting on his lip so hard he could taste blood. _Don't cry. Don't cry._

Ninety-seven…

_Just one more second…_

Ninety-eight…

His fists were so tight his knuckles where white and his fingertips felt numb from lack of blood.

Ninety-nine…

He should run. Midorima wasn't coming. He shouldn't keep waiting for him.

One hundred…

He thought he heard a door creaking open. His head whipped around, hope bubbling in his stomach and tying his throat in a tight knot.

The old lady next door was taking out her trash.

He forgot he was trying not to cry.

One hundred and one…

What had he expected, really? That if he waited one more second…

One hundred and two…

Midorima would change his mind and come running after him asking for forgiveness and everything would be alright?

One hundred and three…

But Midorima hadn't changed. Seven years ago he had chosen his family and his arranged marriage.

One hundred and four…

Seven years ago, he had run away and Midorima had never tried to chase him.

One hundred and five…

And just like seven years ago, this time Midorima wouldn't come after him either. _He won't come_.

One hundred and six…

He didn't come.

He ran. His legs could hardly hold his weight. His eyes were so blurry he couldn't even see where he was going. He couldn't breathe. The tears were choking him and forcing strangled whimpers out of his throat. He could taste them on his tongue, feel them on his cheeks and neck, cold, and sticky and burning his skin.

He almost stopped halfway, a stupid, stupid voice in his head telling him _one more second, please, just one more second_. But he shut it down as he continued running blindly, and he smirked mirthlessly. Of course this was going to happen. He'd been so stupidly caught up in romantic fantasies that he'd forgotten the mistress's rule of thumb:

_He will never leave his wife for you._

**To be continued**

I purposefully made it one hundred and six because of their jersey numbers, you can slay me now, I deserve it.

I hop y'all are a sobbing mess by now but I still expect your opinions?


	17. He just never changes

**Chapter 16**

**He just never changes**

The doorbell rang.

"Tetsu, could you get the door? My hands are kind of full over here."

For a moment, this felt awfully like a _déja vú_ for Kuroko, but he shook the thought away and went to open the door. His baby blue eyes widened in shock. This _was_ a _déja vú_, no matter how he looked at it.

"Sorry, Kuroko. Would you… would you guys mind if I crashed for a few days?"

Kuroko was too startled to reply, so he just moved aside. At least this time, Takao was able to walk himself in, unlike last time. Yet, for some reason, his tear-stricken face and red eyes from crying made Kuroko feel almost as anguished as the time he'd showed up bruised and battered. Perhaps Takao's heart was as broken now as his body had been the day he'd collapsed at their door.

* * *

Kuroko took a deep breath. Takao had just finished telling them everything that had happened. Unlike last time, he didn't break down in tears and wail his woes for hours, sobbing and sniffling miserably, struggling to catch his breathe. Kuroko suspected Takao had already cried his eyes dry. Instead he sat there, his gaze glued to the ground, his raven bangs hiding his face away, and he calmly explained the situation and tried to laugh it off with feigned smiles.

"_I should've seen it coming, haha_." He'd forced a chuckle. "_That guy... he just never changes, haha_." His voice had broken a little, and the forced laughter sounded more like a whimper. He rubbed his eyes with his hands. "_Sorry guys. I promise I won't impose on you for too long; I just need some time… to pick myself up and shit. Sorry, really_." And he'd locked himself in the guestroom –with Nigou, who seemed very keen on comforting him, following close behind-, from where his sobs had been barely audible for the next three hours.

Kuroko was _this_ close to picking up the phone and screaming some harsh truths on Midorima's ears, but that would be out of character for him.

"Want me to beat some sense into him?" Kagami-kun offered, as if he'd been reading his mind.

The phantom man sighed. "While I do think Midorima-kun deserves a rough wake-up call, I'm afraid violence is not the way to go about it."

His husband sat on the couch next to him, his arms spread as if offering himself for pillow, which Kuroko gladly accepted. "But we can't just let it be, can we? The wedding is in one month." His light commented with concern, as he tangled his fingers in between Kuroko's baby blue locks. "I just can't believe Midorima, seriously. He's such an idiot."

"He is." Kuroko buried his nose in Kagami's chest, allowing the gentle heartbeats to lull him. It seemed so unfair that Takao-kun couldn't be happy just because Midorima-kun was stuck in his traditional family values. While he understood how hard it was for Midorima-kun to turn his back on his family, that he loved so much, it was just dumbfounding that he would still let Takao-kun, whom he loved even more, and who made him so utterly happy, walk away from him twice.

He sighed once again and pulled away from his husband's embrace, reluctantly. "Kagami-kun, I am very upset right now. Would you mind running to Magi Burger and fetch me a vanilla milk-shake? I promise to reward you appropriately when you're back."

Kagami-kun, not obtuse enough to miss the implication, went red in the face, and before Kuroko could say anything else, he'd already dashed out of the door. Kuroko smiled, pleased to see he still had Kagami-kun wrapped around his little finger, and pulled out his cellphone.

The line rang twice before someone picked up. "_Apologies, Akashi-sama is very busy right now, would you like to leave a message?_"

Kagami-kun wasn't as hostile towards Akashi as he'd once been, but he still was mildly displeased to even hear his name uttered in conversation. Not that he could blame him, considering Akashi had tried to stab him with a pair of scissors once. Of course, Kagami was well aware that Akashi was different from back then, and he even acknowledged that his feelings were irrational, but that was a very harsh first impression to forget.

"Furihata-kun? Tell him it's Kuroko. He'll pick up the phone."

He heard his former teammate gasp in surprise on the other end of the line before calling for the red-headed emperor. "_Sei, it's Kuroko_!" came his high-pitched voice and Kuroko smiled. Seriously, if Akashi could be happy with Furihata-kun in spite of his father –who was much more strict than Midorima's family- it just stood to no reason that Midorima-kun was so stubborn about this.

"_Long time no see, Tetsuya. You must forgive Kouki, he gets upset when our private time gets interrupted_."

Kuroko heard Furihata squeal in embarrassment in the background and he chuckled.

"Oh no, please tell Furihata-kun I'm sorry for the interruption. I just need a favor from you, if you are not too busy. It's about Midorima-kun."

Although he couldn't see his former captain, he could almost hear his interest growing when Midorima's name was brought up. So he hadn't been wrong in assuming Akashi was already involved in this to some extent. Someone had had to be pulling the strings to make Takao's abuser lose his corporate support and be thrown in jail after all.

"_Anything to help our good stubborn friend Shintarou_."

* * *

"Hey, coach, isn't Midorima-san coming? You promised he'd come." The team's shooting guard Makoto, asked, looking disillusioned. As a shooting guard, he was the one most excited to meet the legendary three-point machine.

"I'm sorry, he had a last minute emergency and couldn't make it." Takao replied with a sad smile. "But you still ought to do your best, you hear me? If you make it to the next round, I'll have Kagami from the Vorpal Swords come and practice with you guys, how's that sound?"

The kids' eyes sparkled with excitement and they cheered happily, rushing to the court to begin the game. He looked at them endearingly, remembering when he was a young kid who loved basketball and spent half of his life watching reruns of Michael Jordan's golden age. It was a good thing these kids' idols were people who lived in the same continent, and he hoped Kagami would forgive him for the commitment he'd just signed him to. Because he had no doubts that those kids would win, they were _that_ good, and he was proud to say so as their coach.

He took a sideways glance at the crowd. As usual, it was mostly the kids' parents, a couple of passersby and a handful of scouts from schools with important basketball teams. No two-meter (actually 199 centimeters) tall green-headed giant.

* * *

Midorima was at his parent's home, reluctantly reviewing Kanako's guest list for the wedding. Why did they even need five hundred people to attend a damned business transaction? The groom's side was notoriously smaller than the bride's side, and when he stumbled with Takao's name he felt a knot forming down his throat and some tears prickling the corners of his eyes. He still didn't want to believe he'd lost the love of his life again. Fate had given him a second chance to make things right –even Oha-Asa had said it- and he'd screwed up again. Now he knew there was no going back. It was hard to believe that less than a week ago, he'd been holding his beloved in his arms and everything had seemed perfect.

He shook the thoughts out of his mind. Takao had been unfair too, he was trying to convince himself. He'd tried to push him for an answer, when Midorima wasn't ready to give it. He'd basically told him he had to throw his family away if he wanted to be with him. But Midorima loved his family. His mother had always been his support, back when he didn't have any friends and other kids would bully him for being so weird. His sister was an insufferable adolescent, but she'd been his accomplice for many years, helping him find his lucky items, and making up excuses for their parents every time he'd go to spend the night with Takao. And he loved their shop, the silence, the smell of tea leaves, the warm vapors of tea, the peace of mind the tea ceremony gave him. Takao had wanted him to give all that up, and he just couldn't.

The sound of the doorbell pulled him out of his musings. He wasn't really in the mood to humor unexpected visitors, and he was ready to tell the unwanted guest to shoo away, but he couldn't even open his mouth before another voice peeped from behind the door.

"Long time no see, Midorimacchi!"

This had to be a joke.

* * *

"Would you mind telling me what are the two of you doing here?" he finally asked with gritted teeth.

"Gee, what's up with the hostility? There's nothing wrong with checking up with old pals, is it?" Aomine replied, mockingly.

"Besides, we heard you're getting married! How mean of you not to invite us!" Kise continued, melodramatically.

Midorima huffed in annoyance. "It's an arranged marriage, I saw no need to invite anyone." He replied, handing teacups to his unwanted guests. The Midorima household's hospitality was not going to be put into question, no matter the circumstances.

Kise took a sip of his tea and grinned. "As always, Midorimacchi's tea is the best in town."

"Stop beating around the bush. You wouldn't come down here all the way from Kanagawa just to 'check up'" Midorima really wanted to know what these two wanted so he could shove them out the door and have his miserable peace and quiet back.

Kise pouted childishly. "See? This is why we have to catch up! Daiki and I have been living together for **four** years, how come you didn't know about it? You're a terrible friend, Midorimacchi."

That took him by surprise. He knew those two had started dating at some point during High School, but he never imagined they would still be together after all these years. Hadn't it all started because Aomine was bitter about being rejected by Kuroko and because Kise was too infatuated to say no, even if it meant being a rebound? It's not like this was his first encounter with Kise since graduating high school, they met at least twice a year with their other former teammates. And he'd met Aomine less than a month ago, when the Tozai incident happen. Really, how come he didn't know about this?

"We have a pretty neat place in Ikebukuro, you should come visit someday. Maybe introduce us to the future Mrs. Midorima?" Kise continued, in his carefree teasing tone.

Mrs. Midorima. The thought hadn't really crossed his mind. Surely, Kanako wouldn't want to change her last name. But that wasn't really important. It just really started to sink in that he would be married in less than a month. To Kanako, who loved business much more than she could love any human being. Married, living together, having children to take over their respective family business... It suddenly dawned upon him that his future was a nightmare that was just a few weeks away from becoming true.

"By the way, isn't everyone getting married lately? It's making me feel old." Kise continued. The guy never stopped talking, really. "Akashicchi eloped with his Seirin beau to America to have a secret wedding, how romantic is that? And Kurokocchi and Kagamicchi got married in America some time ago too. And now even Midorimacchi's getting married. Daiki, we should get married too!"

Aomine looked taken aback by the sudden twist in the conversation and his dark skin reddened considerably. "W-w-wha-S-s-shut up, stupid! My police officer job can't afford the trip to America."

Kise sighed, disenchanted. "I guess that's true. My modeling gigs don't bring that much cash home either. I guess I'll have to find a real job if I want to marry Daiki…" he mused.

Aomine looked away, as if he was embarrassed of crushing his boyfriend's illusion. "I… I can get you a r-r-ring in the meantime…" he offered, almost inaudibly.

Kise's golden eyes sparkled and he threw himself at his lover, a giant grin plastered on his face. "Daiki, you're the best! I love you!" he squealed, planting a loud kiss on his cheek. Midorima was glad his parents weren't home, this scene would've scandalized them.

He sighed at the scene unfolding in front of his eyes, longingly. In many ways, Kise was a lot like Takao –so much so that they'd actually become good friends in their later years of high school-, and seeing him like that made him wonder whether Takao would've wanted to get married too. Before they broke up, they had promised to move in together, and they had been looking for apartments until the day everything collapsed. He imagined the church where he ought to marry next month, and imagined Takao standing next to him, holding his hand and smiling. He imagined sliding a golden band down his ring finger and kissing him for the world to see, and everyone would know that Takao Kazunari was his, just as he was Takao's, and that they would spend the rest of their lives together.

The tears he'd had to bite back earlier started stinging his eyes again.

"Guess it's time we stop beating around the bush after all." Aomine said out loud. Midorima hadn't realized at what point his two friends had stopped making out to look at him with deadly serious eyes.

"We actually came because we wanted to talk about you and Takaocchi."

**To be continued**

Even though I often say that Kise wouldn't go around calling everyone by –cchi, I absolutely believe he is Kazu's brother from another mother and they'd hit it off and become bffs right away (and if you're wondering why then didn't Kazu turn to Kise for help, it's because the first time Toujiro coincidentally dropped him off near Kuroko's place and now it's sort of become his go-to safe place)

I want to thank you all for the amazing response I received from last chapter, it made me very happy to receive so many nice, tearful comments. I hope you will continue to share your feelings with me and this story as we approach the end. Thank you, really, your encouragement really makes my days better.


	18. This is an intervention

**Chapter 17**

**This is an intervention**

"We actually came because we wanted to talk about Takaocchi."

Midorima's breath got caught in his throat.

"That's… that's none of your business."

"I'll make it my business if I want to. You're our friend, and we can't just let you ruin your life like this."

Shintarou took a deep breath, his emerald eyes glued to the table. Should he confide in Kise and Aomine, the two biggest idiots he'd ever come across, with something this important? And even if he did, what could they do to fix it?

"It's pointless to talk about it anyway. He was the one who decided to leave I don't think he wants to see me anymore."

Aomine gulped down the last of his tea and frowned at him. "But have you stopped to think about _why_ he left?"

"I…" his memories of that day were blurry and distant. He remembered Takao's angry crying face and his broken screams.

_You just gave up!_

"I… I don't know… Everything was going fine and then…" and then Kanako showed up, and with her, his own responsibilities came to pull him back to reality, and Takao had been angry about that and then he'd started crying and screaming and asking questions and everything had turned confusing.

_Do you love me?_

Why was Takao crying? After everything he'd done to keep him safe, why did it all end up in tears again? They loved each other; he had no doubts about it now, why couldn't they be together? Why couldn't Takao understand how hard it was for him to think about pushing his family away? Why had he been born in a family that would never accept the man he loved? Why did it have to turn out like this?

_I wanted you to fight for us!_

And he'd tried so hard to fix it, to make it better, but anything he said only seemed to enrage Takao further. He'd tried to grab him and stop him from running away, but no matter how far he stretched his arm, he couldn't reach him.

_Are you breaking up with me?_

The memories from the first time they parted started flooding his mind and getting mixed with the ones from last week, and everything was more confusing by the minute_. You were the one who broke it off_, he thought bitterly.

_We are through. Over. THE END_

He wanted to go back to those two weeks, when his home was a bubble where he didn't have to worry about whatever happened outside and all that mattered was Takao, his warmth, his smiles, his love that made everything better, how perfectly he fit in his arms, how they fulfilled each other, how happy they were together.

_I love you, Shin-chan. With all my heart._

A single tear slid down his cheek. The wet feeling on his face brought him back to reality, where he faced his two former teammates, who were staring at him with concern and confusion.

"A-are you alright, Midorimacchi?" Kise asked tentatively, handing him a tissue

"Of course I'm not fucking alright!" How could he be, when Takao wasn't by his side? This was all Akashi's fault. If he hadn't given Kanako that crazy idea about the double date with Tozai, none of this would have happened and he would've gone on with this marriage and jumped head-first into lifelong domestic misery, without the pain of losing the love of his life _again_.

_But if we hadn't met then, that man would still be hurting Takao_, he mused briefly. Maybe this unhappiness was a small price to pay for Takao's well-being.

"Okay, man, you're gonna take a deep breath and explain this to us in a way that we can understand, otherwise we can't help you." Aomine said, handing his cup over as a sign that he wanted a refill.

Midorima's hand trembled as he refilled the cup, causing a few drops to splash onto the table and for some reason that was the last straw for him. He spilled everything, barely even giving himself time to breathe. He told them about the _omiai_ and how Takao ran away the first time, he talked about Kanako, their marriage, Akashi's stupid idea to bring Takao back into his life, the horrible wedding planning, how Takao's touch would linger just a second too long when they were trying on the wedding suits, all the times he'd been _this_ close to telling Takao how sorry he was, how much he wanted him back; he even talked about Tozai Toujiro, how he'd hurt Takao and how powerless he had been, he told them about the time they kissed and how perfect everything had been and how it had all crashed and burned.

When he finished talking, he felt like a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders, although he didn't really know why. Talking didn't change the situation, but for some reason, just letting go of his pent up anger and pain seemed to make it a little more bearable.

His two friends gawked at him in disbelief, and the silence ran for a full minute that made Midorima doubt the use of telling these two idiots about his woes.

"Of course he would get mad at you!" Kise finally exclaimed, slapping his own forehead.

"Damnit man, it's almost as if you were trying to piss him off on purpose."

Midorima didn't understand their reaction. Had they completely missed the part when Takao had made extreme requests and refused to listen to any reason? His teammates seemed to catch on to his confusion and decided to fill him in before he could ask any question.

"Speaking from firsthand experience…" Kise began, his expression showing he was not excited about this particular topic "… you obviously want the person you love to make you their first priority. It really hurts when that person's thinking of someone else." He eyed Aomine casually, which didn't go unnoticed, and Aomine returned an apologetic glance. So their relationship _did_ start as a rebound. Were they just sticking together out of habit then? No, the way they looked at each other showed that maybe that had been the case in the past, but now it was completely different. He saw their mismatched hands lacing together on top of the table and he remembered how it felt to hold Takao's hand. He longed for that familiar warmth.

"But I… I'm not thinking of someone else at all. Takao has always been the only one." He objected. What did all this have to do with him?

"Oh, and he knows that, I'd bet. So imagine how much it hurt him when he knew you were still going to marry that girl. You do realize what that implies, don't you? It's not just that she's your official 'wife'; she's the one you'll take to social gatherings, the one you'll introduce to your family, and your mother will show her your baby pictures and they'll laugh together about it. She'll live with you and you'll most likely end up having sex with her, she'll be the mother of your children, and you'll grow old together. She'll be the one telling you "Have a nice day" in the mornings and "Welcome home" at night. That's marriage. Where does Takaocchi fit in this picture, Midorimacchi? At best he'd be 'the other woman'. And really, playing second fiddle for someone you love is like… the most painful thing ever."

Aomine looked away regretfully, but Kise just leaned into him, resting his golden head on top of his shoulder, a peaceful smile gracing his lips and showing that, much as he disliked to talk about the past, he was completely content with how things were for them now..

"That… that was never my intention…" maybe when Kise put it that way, it did make some sense that Takao was so upset with him, but even so, it was just a misunderstanding. The scenario that Kise proposed was certainly not something he ever thought of or wanted. If anything, he'd figured he could have the "official" marriage to save face and then go on with his life as if it had never happened. But he realized it had been naïve to believe something so absurd would've worked.

"If that wasn't bad enough, you also lead him on all the time, even though you still intended to carry on with the wedding." Kise continued, a severe look on his golden eyes that Midorima hadn't really seen often.

"What do you mean by 'lead him on'? I didn't lie about my feelings."

"Well, you just said you two were basically playing house for nearly a month and being all lovey-dovey and shit, but you never really considered the possibility of breaking off the engagement, did you?"

"I never said I would, I didn't lie to Takao." The truth was that he'd been so caught up in the bliss and happiness of being with the man he loved, being able to hold him, kiss him, hear his voice; making him smile, talking about stupid things, watching basketball games and enjoying each other's warmth, that he'd completely forgotten there was a world out there, and that there were things he didn't want to face waiting for him there.

"That's still lying by omission, Midorimacchi. It's obvious that, if you're with someone, you expect that person to have no other commitments. You were the one who kissed him first, and given everything that's happened, of course he would assume you had somehow sorted through the marriage thing. You even told him he was more important than the wedding, what did you expect him to infer from that? That's not just a small lie, it's an extremely hurtful one. If I didn't know you better I'd think you were purposefully trying to be an asshole."

"Like, seriously man, you're such an idiot." Aomine punctuated casually.

"I don't want to hear that from _you_, of all people." His snark side replied on autopilot. Being called an idiot by Aomine Daiki, for crying out loud…

"Oh? And I suppose being smart is working out pretty great for you, isn't it?" Aomine challenged with a low growl.

Shintarou gritted his teeth. So now they were going to mock him? He stood up suddenly, slamming his fists on the table, looking down at the former Ace with fire in his eyes.

"Say that again?"

Aomine smirked. "I just said that your smarts haven't been of much use, have they? Or maybe you're not as smart as you think, if you need an idiot like me to help you with your romantic drama."

If Kise hadn't pulled Aomine away in that precise instant, Midorima may have broken his nose. He was about to jump over the table and punch the smug grin away from Aomine's stupid face when the doorbell rang again.

"Awesome timing." He heard Kise sigh in relief. "You stop trying to pick a fight this instant, that's not why we're here."

Midorima tuned out of their lovers' spat and left the room to go open the door.

"My apologies for the intrusion, Midorima-kun."

"'sup Midorima! Long time no see."

Shintarou's face now went completely blank, and he just moved aside to let the light-and-shadow combo inside. Because he totally needed all three most idiotic people in the world plus Kuroko in the confined space of his living room.

"Kurokocchi! You came just in time! Daiki and Midorimacchi were going to kill each other!" Kise wailed dramatically once the three of them made it back from the entrance.

Kuroko sighed and glared at Aomine, then at Midorima. It occurred to the him that he'd been on the receiving end of such chastising glare on more than one occasion. "Behave, you two." He said in his usual deadpan, and that seemed to calm the tension in the room. Midorima pondered briefly that Kuroko may possess some natural angry-mother-like threatening aura.

He served the two new guests and boiled more tea.

"Thank you, Midorima-kun, I very much enjoy your family's tea." Kuroko commented casually.

"And I assume you two are here because…" he already knew –and dreaded- the answer, but he still felt compelled to ask, in vain hopes that it might turn out to be something different.

"We have to talk about what's going on with Takao-kun. This has become utterly ridiculous, and can't be allowed to continue like this."

Now that he'd unloaded all of his pent-up feelings by telling his story to Kise and Aomine, it was starting to grate on him that all this people somehow felt entitled to mess with his personal life as if they had any clue of what he was going through. Everyone kept acting like the whole thing had been his fault, as if Takao hadn't been the one to start every fight with ridiculous demands, then storm out of the room in between screams without even giving him the chance to argue.

"And I suppose you have some brilliant idea of what to do about this? Or are you just going to tell me that I'm an idiot and that I deserve everything that's happening?"

"Well, you kinda do, mate."

He probably would've punched Kagami, but his previous bout with Aomine had drained him of all energy, and thinking of Takao left him with little to no fighting spirit whatsoever. He was stuck in an insufferable middle point between blind rage that made him want to punch the walls full of holes, and heart-wrenching unhappiness that made him want to just curl up in a corner and cry until he stopped breathing or something of the sort. Every time he started to feel pissed off, he remembered Takao's crying face and he felt like a pile of undeserving trash, and then he remembered how everyone was putting all the blame on him which made him insanely angry, rinse and repeat.

"What Kagami-kun means to ask is whether you've even tried calling Takao-kun or anything of the sort since your last fight."

The question threw him off a bit, and he had a feeling Kuroko already knew the answer, so he wasn't really sure of why he was asking. What did that have to do with anything?

"Well… I guess I haven't, but I don't see how it's rel-"

"Wait, hold on right there, Midorimacchi. You're complaining that Takaocchi wouldn't even listen to you or let you apologize, but you haven't even tried to call him ever since? You're supposed to be the smart one here!"

"It seems school smarts don't cure emotional retardation, though."

Did Aomine feel an intense desire to get a broken nose, he wondered? "Why would I-"

"When you two broke up the first time, did you call him then?"

This was getting even more confusing. Why did that matter all of a sudden? Back then Takao had made it crystal clear that they were through and that he didn't want to see him ever again. Why would he have called a guy who had explicitly said he didn't want to hear from him?

"Oh my god, Midorimacchi, when someone says they don't want to see you ever again after a big fight and lots of tears, they actually mean 'you have to chase me to prove you care'. Seriously, you have a sister, have you never watched a chick-flick before? This is basic stuff!" Kise squealed, his face pale with horror. "No wonder Takaocchi hates you."

"And how am I supposed to get such a confusing message?" Why was this also his fault? Why did people expect him to understand something so weird and complicated? He'd heard that women would usually deliver confusing messages, but Takao was a guy! How was he supposed to guess there was an underlying meaning to all of that?

"I understand that an emotionally constipated person like you would find it difficult to understand." Kuroko said with a straight face, as if he hadn't just thrown three insults at him in a single sentence. "But Takao-kun specifically said he wanted you to fight and show you cared about your relationship didn't he? It really could not get more straightforward than that, I believe. But instead you just gave up once again. It's almost as if you will quit trying the moment things get a little bit difficult, it was to be expected that Takao-kun would feel upset and hurt about it."

Midorima would've stopped to wonder how come everyone in the room seemed so privy to every detail of his disastrous love life, but what Kuroko said made a lot more sense than he would've wanted to admit. Maybe he was right. Over the course of their relationship, it had always been him who'd back away and give up when the minimum problem surfaced. Takao had been the one to walk away both times, but it had always been because Midorima hadn't been up to try and find a way to make things work. And both times, instead of trying to figure out something to solve their problems and get the love of his life back, he'd just forced himself to come to terms with things and try to move on, even if his life was so empty and colorless without him.

"But… he wanted me to give up my family. He was being unfair. I- my family is very important for me, I could never…"

Kuroko looked at him severely. "Midorima-kun." He interrupted. "You must have a very poor opinion of Takao-kun if you really think he would ask you to do that."

Shintarou's chest tightened.

"Are you kidding? That guy knows you and loves you more than anyone, you really think he doesn't know what your family means to you? That he'd tell you to walk away from them, knowing how much you love them?"

He swallowed thickly. What other option was there? Even if he talked to his family, his father would certainly reject him, possibly even disown him if he knew he was gay. Even if Takao didn't explicitly want him to cut his ties with his family, asking him to break off the marriage and try to work out their relationship necessarily included confronting his father about it.

"Y'know, that guy had promised the mini-basket kids that _a certain someone_ would show up to see them play, and that _someone_ never showed up, so he asked me to help them train, to make it up to them." Kagami commented. "But y'know he was… he would look around every once in a while. He didn't say it out loud, but I'm pretty sure he was still sorta hoping that _someone_ would show up. He seemed pretty heartbroken when _you_ didn't. And like, that guy really doesn't deserve any more heartbreak, he's gone through too much shit already. You need to sort this shit out, you can't keep hurting him like this."

Midorima clenched his fists, his head spinning. "You are all just saying this to make me feel bad as if I was not miserable enough as it is." He said, bitterly.

Kuroko frowned.

"Yes, Midorima-kun we are trying to make you feel bad. And in spite of it, nothing we tell you will make your situation as bad as Takao-kun's. After everything he went through, the way you broke his heart is most unfair and unforgivable." The look on his eyes was hard. Midorima remembered that Takao had been hiding with Kuroko and Kagami when he first ran away from his abuser, and how worried and guilty Kuroko had felt after Takao was attacked. He wondered if Takao was taking shelter with them now too. His chest tightened painfully again, thinking of how much Takao must have cried and how hurt he must feel. "Midorima-kun, it is not your obligation to respond to Takao-kun's feelings if you don't reciprocate them. That would only hurt you both even more. But it is obvious to everyone that you two love each other and could make each other happy if you stopped being stubborn about this. If this were only about you, I would still be displeased, since we are friends and none of us wish to see you unhappy, but that would be your call to make. Yet I can not stand idle and watch you ruin both of your lives. I am not telling you to separate from your family, but you must at least try to make them understand that you will not be happy if this marriage takes place."

"If you don't care about your own happiness, at least do it for Takao's. He's gone through enough shit." Aomine sentenced.

Midorima grabbed his phone absentmindedly, not even looking at the screen, but knowing there was a photo of Takao as the background picture. He had set it up after they reconciled and although he'd thought of replacing it when Takao left, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He remembered Takao's bright face, smiling back at him every time he looked at the screen. How long had it been since he'd last seen that beautiful smile that he so loved? Takao's tearful face from seven years ago flashed through his mind.

"_What… what about __**us**__?"_

"_Do you love me?"_

"What… what am I supposed to do?"

The doorbell rang for the third time today, but there was no more strength left in his body. In a faraway place, he heard Kuroko saying he would get the door, and the sound of footsteps going out of the room. A few minutes later, Kuroko came back, followed by an extra pair of footsteps. Midorima looked up to meet fire-red hair and ruby eyes.

"Akashicchi!"

"Oi, what are you doing here?"

"Took you long enough, for the one who set this whole thing up."

"In that you are mistaken, Daiki. The idea was Tetsuya's to begin with, I just happened to share his goals."

It had already crossed his mind that all these idiots wouldn't just happen to drop by his place to slap him in the face with the failures of his life on the same day by pure coincidence, but it had never occurred to him that they would all sort of agree to gang up on him. It was just wildly unusual for all of them to be sitting in the same room when they could barely stand each other (the ones that were life partners non-withstanding).

"Just what is going on here? What's the big idea with you lot?"

"I believed it would be clear at this point, Midorima-kun. This is an intervention."

"A what?"

"You know, when everything's going wrong with your life and the people that love you get together to try and help you fix it."

For starters, it was a little bit difficult to wrap his head around the idea that this trio of idiots, plus Kuroko who didn't stand him, and Akashi who was, well… Akashi, could somehow agree to be 'the people that loved him' and put together some elaborate scheme to make him fix things with Takao.

"All of us have come to the conclusion that we simply can not allow you to continue down this road. In our own particular way, we are your friends and do not want to see you ruin your life like this. Not when you could easily be happy with your chosen partner if you would just let go of your sense of obligation." Akashi explained, quietly taking a sip from his tea. "The Midorima family tea remains as excellent as ever." He added, and Midorima was for the first time in his life growing tired of people complimenting his tea brewing skills.

"Oh, by the way, Akashicchi, why didn't you bring your boy over? I _so_ wanted to get to know him better, seeing how he's got you all tamed and everything."

"Kouki thought it would be inappropriate for him to be here, since he is not that closely acquainted with Shintarou." Akashi replied. "And I certainly have not been 'tamed', whatever it is that you mean by that, Ryota."

"Of course you haven't, _Sei_." Someone in the group whispered teasingly and the four of them sniggered, exchanging an accomplice glance, and even Midorima allowed himself a small chuckle. This of course didn't go unnoticed by their former captain, who cleared his throat and looked away, noticeably embarrassed by the insinuation.

"But that is beyond the matter at hand. Would you be so kind as to put me up to date with our progress so far?" he continued, trying to distract attention from that matter.

"Midorima seems to have finally caught up on his screw ups but is still not smart enough to know what he's supposed to do now." Aomine summarized.

"The answer should be obvious to you by now. You have to call off your engagement. It is the only thing standing in the way of your happiness. I am truly surprised that you did not make such a decision since you first encountered Takao Kazunari on that double date."

Before Midorima could consider Akashi's opinion, something he said set off an internal alarm in his head. "So you _did_ know Takao would show up, that was the reason you got that absurd idea into Kanako's head in the first place!" He was enraged. Akashi had been pulling the strings all along. Who did he think he was to meddle with his life like that? To what purpose, truly? The only thing that had accomplished was making him even more miserable than he already was.

"The opportunity arose unexpectedly and I thought it was a good moment for you to steer back into the right direction. It may not have been the best approach, but I did it purely out of concern for your well-being. Kanako may be my relative, but she is not right for you."

"Who the fuck are you to decide what's good for me, anyway?!" Somehow, Akashi's nonsense about Takao always brought out his angriest side.

"Midorima-kun, please don't be ridiculous. Are you really implying there is someone else on this planet that is good for you apart from Takao-kun?"

There wasn't, and there would never be, he knew for sure. He was letting his pride get the best out of him, even when all his "friends" were trying to help him. He took a deep breath, reminding himself of why he had tacitly agreed to this so-called "intervention."

"Now, as I was saying, the immediate solution is to cancel the wedding, the sooner the better. If you are concerned about the repercussions this may have on your father's business, you can leave that in my hands. The Karasuma are a branch of the Akashi family, I can easily make all the necessary arrangements."

Akashi made it all sound so easy, he momentarily wondered why indeed he hadn't done that in the first place, but…

"It's not that simple, I'm afraid."

"Eh? How come? Didn't you say the reason you're going through with this is because it's good for the shop? If Akashicchi can fix it, what's there left to be troubled about?"

"It's just… my father… he would never approve of it. He would be extremely disappointed in me. I don't want to turn my back on my family, when I owe them so much."

The other five guys stared at him blankly, as if they had no clue of how to follow up such reasoning. And that was indeed the problem. He didn't have it in him to go against his father.

"There really is nothing to be done. My father would never forgive me if he learned that I'm…"

"Gay? What's the big deal with that?" Kagami finally spoke up. "Parents want their children to be happy, I'm sure your folks'd understand if you explain it properly."

Midorima clenched his fists in frustration. "That's easy for you to say. Your family has lived in America for a long time, they have a different mentality. They even gave you their blessing for your marriage. The Midorima clan has an ancient tradition that my father upholds with pride. There are expectations for the first-born son of this family that I can't disappoint. It is bad enough that I will not be taking over the shop, but my father would surely collapse if he thought I would not continue with the family lineage."

"Oi, oi, oi, wait a minute!" Aomine exclaimed alarmed. "Family lineage? You do realize that to make babies you have to fuck your wife, right? You're gayer than a rainbow unicorn, can you even get it up with a girl?"

Shintarou wanted to make some comment about the 'gayer than a unicorn' part, but he had to admit he hadn't really considered the physiological implications of sex with a woman. He'd never done it before, and the part of his brain in charge of activating his reproductive instinct (which would normally start sending crazy hormones all over his body when he thought about Takao), would downright flatline if he tried to imagine naked women. It's not like he thought women were repulsive or anything, but he felt as much sexual attraction towards them as he did for, let's say, a tree. Maybe when the time came he could try to think of Takao and the way he would blush with the heat, and how his eyes would glaze over with desire, and how he would call his name in the throes of passion… and then he'd end up crawling down to some corner to cry.

Well, he had a month before the wedding to come up with a contingency plan. Because this was unacceptable. His father would certainly not find this in any way amusing.

"Oh, for fuck's sake, would you quit it with your father? You're not marrying him, he'll just have to live with having a son that happens to like dicks, no big deal."

Midorima's face went bright red, a mixture of embarrassment and irritation.

"Easy for you to say, your family wouldn't expect anything from you."

Aomine rose again, enraged, and lifted his fist menacingly "Feeling like getting a new pair of glasses, asshole?!"

"That's the only way you can deal with conflict, isn't it?!"

"Stop it you two!" Kuroko yelled while Kagami held Midorima and Kise stopped Aomine to prevent them from beating each other into a pulp. "Aomine-kun, please go outside for a minute, you need to cool your head."

"Fucking prick." The miracle Ace spat before leaving for the garden.

Midorima huffed indignantly, still too riled up to admit he had been the one in the wrong.

"You know, Midorimacchi? Daiki's family disowned him when he told them about us. They haven't spoken in years." Kise commented gloomily. "Maybe if you could get your head out of your own butt and realize that other people have problems too, you wouldn't be in this shit." He remarked, and rushed outside presumably to help his lover calm down.

"And regardless of how long they've lived in America, my parents weren't particularly excited when they knew 'bout me 'n Tetsu. They did give us their blessing, but Mum still calls to whine about how she'll never have grandchildren." Kagami added, although he was clearly not as upset as the other two. "Tetsu's dad doesn't even know about us, he fucking hates me already, he'd probably hire some goons to kill me if he knew I was banging his precious boy."

"Kagami-kun is quite right. I must admit I have avoided telling him the truth because I worry about his reaction. My father still thinks I am a child; he would be wrecked if his illusion was shattered. Especially if he knew _who_ is the one doing the 'banging'." Kuroko commented, his expression as blank as if he were talking about the weather. Kagami's face turned so red, his skin matched the color of his hair, but before he could protest the sudden outing of the details of their private life, his shadow kept talking "My mother does know, but she has always been quite fond of Kagami-kun, so she wasn't troubled. And I also told my grandmother when we moved in together, and she was most upset. Although she was more concerned with my choice of partner rather than what they might have between their legs." Kuroko mentioned nonchalantly.

"Oh, yeah, that was funny actually. She said that if Tetsu was gonna' swing this way, he should've at least picked someone smarter and that didn't look like a drug dealer." Kagami's face, still not entirely recovered from his husband's not-so-subtle insinuations from a moment ago, showed he was everything _but_ amused by that. "But she also has early stages of Alzheimer, so we have to remind her that we're married every time we visit and she seems less resilient about the idea each time."

"The point is that you're not the only one disappointing your family, Midorima-kun, and you can't keep using that as an excuse to make yourself miserable." Kuroko sighed, looking at him in the eye.

"Yeah, look at that guy." Kagami followed, pointing at Akashi, who had remained conspicuously silent during the whole exchange. "His father's much worse than yours and he still went and got married with whoever the hell he wanted."

Midorima, who had been silently taking in everything Kuroko and Kagami said for the past few minutes, tried to think of something to reply in this particular case, but found that he had nothing to say. Because really, was there any parent in the world more controlling and strict than Akashi's?

"Oh, my father has not spoken a word to me since I told him about Kouki. I did have to threaten to facilitate a media scandal that would compromise the Akashi Group's position if he tried to interfere with us, so we have reached a gentlemen's agreement of sorts. Since I am the only heir and he is much too proud about the purity of our bloodline, I did have some leverage in the negotiations, so it mostly worked out in our favour. Our wedding has been so far kept in secret because I doubt he would take it kindly, he surely harbors hope of marrying me to a more suitable heiress eventually. But I believe he is less concerned about whether Kouki is a man, and more about how unremarkable he perceives him to be." Akashi explained nonchalantly. "Of course he is also not aware of how unique and special Kouki is, but that is his loss."

Midorima watched in awe as the usually cold and severe look in Akashi's ruby eyes softened and a small, almost imperceptible smile drew itself on his lips. Although he'd known of Akashi's relationship with Furihata Kouki, he had never really noticed the way his eyes grew warm when he spoke of his beloved. So even Akashi could fall in love and care for someone in that way. Midorima's attention was brought to his friend's left hand and the golden band on his ring finger, which he was stroking absentmindedly. It must be wonderful, Midorima thought, to be with the person you love and know you will share the rest of your lives together. He wanted that so badly.

"See, Midorimacchi? If Akashicchi could pull it off, you can do it too!" Kise exclaimed enthusiastically. "You love Takaocchi, don't you? Stop being an idiot and fight for your love!"

"It is true that your parents may disapprove of your choice, it is, in fact almost certain that they will, especially your father. This may be hard to hear but I believe that if they reject you for your choice, they are not truly thinking about your happiness. From my personal experience, I can assure you do not need that kind of controlling filial bonds." Akashi said severely "Besides, your sister has always supported you in this, has she not?"

He nodded. In spite of their differences, Shizuku had always supported him. When he started dating Takao, she would always point out how much happier he looked. And after they broke up she had comforted him, made sure that he took care of himself, and made up excuses for their parents so they would not see him in an unsightly state. When his wedding with Kanako was decided she'd tried to talk him out of it, knowing how unhappy he was about it.

"That reminds me. One of the reasons I came was to deliver these to you. Like I said, Shizuku-san is as concerned with your well-being as we are."

Akashi handed him a large yellow envelope. He opened it and reached inside to find a bunch of photographs, and as he looked at them, he realized it was not his first time seeing them. When they were dating, Takao had gifted him a photo album, as well as a bunch of pictures of the two of them together, for White Day. At that time, they had just decided to move in together after graduation, and Takao had said "_Let's make it our Memory Book, so in ten years we can see how much we've changed_." They broke up the following week, so he'd never actually gotten around to putting the pictures in the book, and he had thought them lost a long time ago, but these were, unmistakably, the same pictures that Akashi had brought him. He would've never imagined that Shizuku had kept them all this time; he hadn't seen them in _years_.

"Shizuku-san said she had about a thousand of these, and I think she meant it literally."

Some photographs showed them playing basketball together, there were many cut-outs from magazines, from the year when they won the Winter Cup and every sports magazine wanted a word with Shuutoku's Ace and his Captain, and he remembered just how much he'd loved receiving Takao's perfectly timed passes. Other photos had actually been taken in secret by Takao, when Midorima wasn't looking. Most of them showed Shintarou in the background doing some random activity –eating, reading, practicing his shots- whilst Takao winked at the camera in the foreground and made a peace sign with his free hand; but there were also many pictures of the two of them lying together in bed, the school's rooftop or the basketball court near their houses, in which Midorima would be sleeping and embracing Takao's lithe frame, while Takao smirked mischievously at the camera. And there were plenty other pictures of them going out in dates, holding hands, attending the summer festivals (Takao looked so handsome in a yukata). There were even two pictures of them kissing. In one of them, they had been in the middle of a crowd watching the Sumidagawa Firework Festival, when Takao had suddenly grabbed him by the wrist and, disregarding their surroundings completely, planted an intense kiss on his lips. The photo had captured that precise moment, as well as the exploding fireworks in the background, and their light let him appreciate just how immersed in the kiss they both were, and just how much they had wanted each other in that instant. The second one was a lot more modest; they were both sitting on Midorima's bed, and he couldn't really place the specific context of the scene. Takao's hands were clinging to the collar of his shirt tightly, while Shintarou's arm was circling his short lover's waist and his shooting hand was gently lifting his face by the chin. It was an extremely intimate moment, the position of their bodies made it seem as if they were gravitationally drawn to each other and couldn't even stand the thought of being torn apart.

"Midorima-kun?"

"Are you alright, Midorimacchi?"

"Oi, Midorima, are you still with us?"

"Have you made up your mind yet, Shintarou?"

He looked up to meet his friends' concerned faces and noticed that the tears he'd (mostly) been successfully holding back so far were now flooding out of control down his cheeks and had started to fall on to the photograph he was holding. He wiped them away quickly, not wanting to damage the image, but he couldn't stop them from spilling out of his eyes.

"I've… I've made a terrible mistake." He choked on his own tears and felt he was losing his breath.

He wanted him back. He loved Takao, he always had and always would, more than anything or anyone in the entire world. He couldn't imagine the rest of his life without him, or rather, he didn't want to. Losing him once had been painful, and made him resign himself to a life of dutiful unhappiness. Losing him the second time was so excruciating, he feared his heart would stop beating from the pain. How had he even considered giving up and letting him go? Why had he been clinging so desperately to his father's desires, when Takao had always been much more important than anything his father might want from him? He'd tried to put the blame on Takao, not wanting to admit just how much he had hurt the man he loved, but he couldn't keep denying it anymore.

"But now you know how to fix that mistake, don't you?"

He remembered how Takao's voice wavered and cracked the last time they spoke, how he'd held his wrist, desperate not to lose him.

_Are you going to marry her?_

His heart twisted painfully. Why had he let go? He could almost feel it, how the warmth holding Takao slipped through his fingers and how he'd been unable to do anything but watch the love of his life walk away. His hands trembled, the photograph still tightly clasped in his fingers.

"But how… Could he even forgive me?"

He'd wronged Takao deeply. He hadn't thought of it before, but what Kise had said made a lot of sense. He'd been sincere when he said Takao was much more important than anything else, and yet been unable to follow through with it. He could talk a lot of words, but when it had come to acting on them, his words had become worthless. And he'd kissed Takao without telling him the truth and never even questioned himself on what he was doing. He'd promised he would never hurt Takao, and yet he'd only made everything worse. He felt like garbage.

"Midorima-kun". Kuroko placed his hand gently on his shoulder. "Put yourself in Takao-kun's shoes. If it had been him, would you forgive him?"

He chewed on his lower lip. His eyes were still fixed on the photograph. If he looked closely, he could see Takao was smiling into the kiss.

"Of course I would. I would always forgive him, no matter what."

"Well, there you have it." Aomine sentenced harshly.

"But—" he wanted to say he didn't deserve it. He didn't deserve to be forgiven. But Aomine cut him off before he could.

"Stop it already with the stupid excuses. And stop moping around and pitying yourself. Go out there and fucking apologize and make things right fucking already. I'm fucking done with being worried about you, so stop crying and go fix your own mess." He pointed at the door. His brow was scrunched in a frown, but his tone was warm.

Shintarou wiped the tears off his eyes and carefully put the photo in his front pocket. _That's right_, he thought, _not all hope is lost_. He knew what he had to do, and he had to do it soon. The more he waited, the more difficult it would be to make everything right again. It might not be a magical solution for his problems, but it was a first step, and if he didn't take it, nothing would happen. He wouldn't give up this time. Like Takao wanted, he would fight to prove he loved him, to show Takao he cared. And he'd show his father that Takao was the only one who was right for him and the one with whom he wanted to spend the rest of his life. If his father did not approve… well, that would be his loss.

"I apologize for my rudeness, but there are some matters that I must tend to immediately. You can help yourselves to more tea if you so desire, and I trust that you can show yourselves out whenever you wish to leave. I sincerely hope this moment of inexcusable discourtesy will not tarnish your opinion of this family's hospitality." He blabbered, bowing formally before storming out of the house.

Akashi smiled and sighed with relief "If that is the case, I shall take on Shintarou's offer for one more cup of this excellent tea. If you gentlemen would care to join me in a toast for our friend's happiness?"

The other four nodded, exchanging triumphant smiles.

**To be continued**

Well, here it is, Shin-chan getting his ass whopped (emotionally) and the MiraGen (metaphorically)beating some sense into him. Gratuitous AoKise, KagaKuro and insinuations of AkaFuri too! Hoo boy did I hit it out of the park or what (for anyone askin about MuraHimu, I have no fucking clue of how to write them)

I also apologize for the pathetically cheesy ending of the chapter, it's an embarrassment whoops.

When I first wrote this story, KuroFes hadn't come out, and thus it hadn't been revealed that Kagami doesn't have a mother in his life. KuroFes is not really specific about whether she's dead or his parents are divorced, it just says that his only family is his father in the US. My point is that I mention the mother here because I mentioned the parents in plural when Kuroko talks about how they got married, back in chapter... 8? I just wanted to keep the continuity withing the story, even if it contradicts canon (prolly no one would've noticed because it's such a minor detail lol)

Also, I failed to mention it (there was no place to add it), but Kise's family was completely supportive when he came out to them. The sister that got him into modeling said she'd had her suspicions for a while. They've pretty much adopted Aho too. Also, the ones taking the pictures of Midorima and Takao kissing were their sisters, they ship their brothers together really bad.

The Sumidagawa Fireworks festivel takes place in Tokyo's Sumidagawa river at the end of July (the 26th?). I was lucky enough to be in Tokyo when it took place last year so I went, it's really cool and beautiful. Japanese firework festivals are pretty amazing, but that thing was crowded as fuck too lol. IRL Midorima and Takao couldn't have stopped to kiss because the crowd would've pushed them lol.

I apologize for the delay, as you can see the chapter is quite long and I posted a lot of stuff for TakaMido and KagaKuro day. I hope you don't run out of patience with this story and that you enjoyed this sort of fanservicey chapter. Sorry for these dumb long author notes. Please let me know how you feel about it!


	19. I came to inform you

**Chapter 18**

**I came to inform you**

Shintarou had been staring at the front of their store for about five minutes, gathering his resolve. He took a deep breath and pushed the door open. He could see his sister behind the counter, while his mother tended to a customer and his father brewed tea in the back. He waited for his mother to go back to the counter and approached, his fingers shaking.

"Mother, Father." He said, his voice firm.

"Oh, Shintarou. How nice seeing you here. You rarely come to the store these days." His mother acknowledged with a pleasant smile.

"I apologize, my work is quite time consuming." He bowed slightly. "There is an important matter I would like to discuss with you in private." He said finally.

"I see, the store will close in a few more hours, I hope you don't mind waiting."

"Forgive me mother, this is quite urgent, I'm afraid I need to address this issue as soon as possible. I promise it will not take long. I am sure Shizuku can handle the store for a short while." He looked over at his sister apologetically, but she seemed to understand the situation and just nodded.

"I understand. The wedding is approaching, it's natural to be nervous about it. It'll be a good practice for Shizuku." His father declared, wiping his instruments and placing them back on the shelves. "We can talk in the back."

When they reached their private tea room, he sat across his parents on their table, his hands splayed over his knees. He inhaled and exhaled deeply, relishing briefly in the scent of the tea leaves that had always felt like home.

"I must regrettably inform you that I must cancel my engagement with Karasuma Kanako-san." He said in one single breathe, bowing his head deeply and waiting quietly for their response without looking up.

He heard his father take a sharp intake of breathe, but it was his mother who spoke first.

"Shintarou, could you please explain the meaning of this?"

He sat up and saw his father's face devoid of all color, too shocked to speak a word. His mother looked serious and severe. She was, after all the real family head of the Midorima household. Shingen, his father, previously a Tachibana, had married into the prestigious Midorima family and become the face of their business, but it had always been his mother, Mahomi, who truly handled all the family affairs, especially the relations with the tea plantations. His mother embodied their centurial tradition with the grace of her posture and speech and the elegance of her movements and gaze, while his father was in charge of the crude, business side of the equation.

"There is a person I love." He began simply. "And this person loves me back. It is my desire to spend my life with that person and find happiness by their side. I realize this notice is terribly untimely, and it was never my wish to fail your expectations, but I am afraid it is impossible for me to carry on with this marriage." Midorima finished with a deep bow.

His mother tapped on the table quietly.

"It has come to my attention that you have been involved with Takao Kazunari again. He used to be your _best friend_ in Shuutoku, if I remember correctly. Is this related to this sudden decision?"

He knew his mother was asking out of pure courtesy and that she already knew the answer. He had never revealed the truth of his relationship with Takao to his mother, but he realized it had been naïve to believe she was not aware of it. She had always been very cunning, and the way she emphasized the words "best friend" left no doubt to the truth of her intent.

"Yes, Mother. I have in fact loved him, and him only for many years. I had kept it from you knowing you would not approve, but I can no longer hide the truth. Takao is the person I want to share my life with, and I can not possibly imagine it being any other way."

His fingers trembled. If he had fallen in love with a decent girl his parents would not have been happy, but they would have approved in the end. But they would in no way react positively now that they knew his real orientation.

Silence was all the response he got. After a few minutes, he looked up to find his father livid with something that was in between untapped fury and disgust. The vein on his forehead had popped up and was pulsing dangerously. He had never seen his father so angry, and he had to admit the sight made him a little uneasy, but he had already made his decision. He clenched his fists and met his father's eyes with determination, prepared to face anything he would answer.

"And I assume, Shintarou, that this is not your idea of a jest, correct?" His mother asked, still calm, her elegant hands crossed over her lap.

"I am not joking, Mother. Sadly, humor has never been my _forte_." Probably one of the reasons why he'd never been particularly popular in school.

His father gritted his teeth and looked up at him with blood in his eyes. "I should have known. I told you, Mahomi that letting him join the sports club would be nothing but a distraction, and now thanks to that, this ungrateful boy has turned into one of those despicable f-"

"Homosexual, father, but I believe it is not something you can be 'turned' into, especially not by basketball."

His father ignored his remark. "You haven't spoken to the Karasumas about this travesty, have you?"

Shintarou quirked one eyebrow, not sure of what his father could be thinking. "No, I haven't. I thought it most appropriate to let my own family know first."

"Good, good. Then not everything is lost. Shintarou, you will remain in the house until the day of the wedding, and you will not go out except for your shifts at the hospital. We will get in touch with the man responsible for _this_ and let him know he is not to present himself in your near vicinity ever again. Perhaps we may have to persuade him with money, but that shall not be a problem. We still have one month to change you back to normal and no one will ever need to know that this conversation even happened."

Shintarou sighed. Well, he had imagined worse. "Make no mistake, Father; I did not come here to ask for your permission. Like I said before, I came to inform you of my decision, purely out of the respect and gratitude I hold for you and Mother, after all the problems I have caused you and everything I owe to you. I regret that I may be disappointing you as your son, but I hope in time you will come to understand that I can't fulfill your expectations without condemning myself to unhappiness. It is a selfish decision, but I am not going back on it. That is all."

His father's face went a deep shade of red, but Shintarou was no longer afraid. Now that the truth was out, he felt liberated, as if a heavy weight had been lifted from his shoulders. His friends had been right. If his family could not at least accept him for who he was, then maybe he shouldn't let their wishes dictate his future. He thought of Aomine, whose family had turned their backs on him when they learned the truth and his chest tightened in pain and worry, but he also thought of Takao, the warmth of his body in his arms, the beauty of his smile, and any possible doubt dissipated.

"Do not test my patience, Shintarou. If you insist on this non—"

"Do it." Shintarou interrupted. "Whatever it is you will threaten to do, go ahead. I will not change my mind. I want to be with the person I love. I want to try to be happy. Nothing you say will make me go back on that decision."

He thought he saw a small, comforting smile draw itself on his mother's lips just before his father blew up, hollering offensive words that no longer meant anything to him.

* * *

He breathed a sigh of relief as he closed the door of the shop behind him. His father's yelling could still be heard all the way to the street, and even some of the customers had gotten frightened by it and left. It certainly could've been worse, he mused.

He took out his cellphone and browsed for Kanako's number. It was a little bit late today, but he wanted to meet her as soon as possible so this could be finalized. He still had plenty of things left to do.

"Shin-nii!"

He turned back to see his younger sister, now 18 years of age and almost 180 centimeters tall, rushing out of the shop.

"I'm sorry about that. I'm afraid Father will be difficult to handle for a while." He apologized.

She shook her head and smiled at him. "Don't worry, Shin-nii, he'll calm down. I'm glad for you. I was worried you had given up on being happy. Kanako-san's fun and everything, but she's _really_ not suited for you. And I know Kazu-san is the person that makes you the happiest. I think Mom knows too, she'll make Dad come around."

He smiled back and ruffled her green hair, which they'd both inherited from their mother. "Take care, Shizuku. I regret to say I may not be able to show my face around here for some time."

"Good luck, Shin-nii. My birthday's coming up soon, don't you dare use your problem with Dad as an excuse to miss it." She threatened, faking a pout. "I hope you're very happy." And in an unexpected move, she stepped closer, stood on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.

* * *

Shintarou had been waiting at the restaurant for ten minutes when Kanako arrived. She looked beautiful as ever, her burgundy hair tied up in a loose bun, short strands of curly hair framing her smooth face, her eyes glimmering with the lights. She was wearing black dressing pants and a white blouse, with a royal blue overcoat on top, as if she was just out from a business meeting. She waved at him cheerily and ordered a drink before sitting across him at the table

"Sorry for the delay, Shin-chan, I hope you didn't wait long."

He shook his head. "I didn't, and it is I who should apologize. I did call you up on a very short notice, and the way I treated you when we last met was unsightly to say the least."

Back then he'd been so horrified to see that Takao had realized the truth about the marriage that he'd blocked everything else out of his mind and pretty much shoved Kanako outside, half-assedly mumbling that he'd call her later.

She waved her hand dismissively and undid her bun, her long hair cascading down her shoulders. "It _was_ rather rude, but I'm not mad at you, it seems my timing was quite bad."

_Terribly so_, he wanted to say, but he knew he had no one but himself to blame for his fallout with Takao. Which is why he was here in the first place. To fix it and make it all better again.

"The truth is I wanted to discuss a serious matter with you, and I apologize because I am aware of how poor my timing is."

She downed the first drink she received in one gulp and asked for an immediate refill.

"C'mon, don't be so formal, we'll be husband and wife soon, you can speak to me normally. I'm not as stuck up as Sei-chan either."

Shintarou sighed and tapped his teacup lightly. "That is precisely the thing we must talk about. I am very sorry for the inconveniences, but I can no longer carry on with our marriage."

He could hear the liquid being poured into her glass and she didn't respond until the waitress left.

"Is that so? Why the sudden change? It's not like you were ever into it from the start." She sipped on the second drink quietly, as if she wanted to hear his answer before she got all the alcohol into her system.

He felt a lot calmer about this after facing his family. He couldn't go back on it now, nor did he want to. And if he'd been able to face his father's wrath, his insults and his threats, he could deal with Kanako, even if she lost her temper.

"The fact is that I'm… gay. A homosexual."

Kanako blinked and downed her second glass.

"So? I've known that from the start, you're not precisely subtle, Shin-chan. It's okay, you can have some boytoys after we get married, so long as you keep it from the press it should be fine."

That… wasn't quite the response he'd expected. It took him a moment to collect back his thoughts, during which she had the waitress just leave the bottle on the table so she could get her own refills.

"I am afraid that would still not work. I am in love with someone. With Takao. And I want to spend the rest of my life with him, fully, openly. He does not deserve to be a… 'boytoy', or a poorly kept secret. He deserves to be happy and I want to make him so. I sincerely apologize, but I think it would be best if we called off our engagement."

Unlike his father, Kanako responded immediately with a long hum, as if she was considering something. "That's a shame, really, you're such a cutie after all. But I guess you won't change your mind, and I see no point in forcing this through. My father won't take it so lightly, but it's okay, I'll talk to him. I think your shop would lose its charm if it became part of our group anyway, it does have a nice homey appeal. I'll work it out with Sei-chan so neither of our businesses gets too affected by this."

He looked up to meet her smiling face, surprised by her positive response. He didn't expect her to flip out like his father, but she'd so far seemed quite excited about the wedding –if only because it was such a grandiose event- and he had imagined she would get pretty angry at seeing her plans canceled.

"So you are not upset about it?"

She gulped down the last of her drink and smiled reassuringly at him. "Well, I was kind of looking forward to the wedding, we'd made amazing plans. Now I'll never get to wear that dress, and it was so pretty too, -I would've looked _fabulous_\- so it does make me kind of sad. But let's not pretend you're breaking my heart or anything, Shin-chan, you're not _that_ cute. And besides, the company is my one true love." She refilled her cup once more. "I'll have you make it up to me by paying all of my drinks for tonight. Sounds fair to you?" she winked playfully.

He nodded, a little befuddled by her quick pace.

"Anyway, I kind of saw it coming, sort of. You and Kazu-chan, I mean. You probably don't notice it –it took me a while to notice too-, but when you look at him, it's as if you were looking at the most valuable treasure in the entire world. I thought it was my imagination at first, but when I saw you two at your place the other day I just kind of knew." She sighed. "Any girl would feel lucky if their lover would look at her like that. You must love him quite a lot."

Thinking of Takao brought a small smile to his lips and he felt his face heat up. "Yes, I do." He confirmed, uncharacteristically as it was for him to speak so openly about his feelings.

"Well then, let's toast to that." Kanako replied merrily, raising her sake cup. "To Kazu-chan and Shin-chan's happiness!"

They toasted without saying anything else, and she gulped hers down in a single go. He had never noticed how much of a heavy drinker she was. On second thought, there were many things he'd never bothered to learn about her, even though they had been engaged for nearly two years.

"Oh, by the way, Shin-chan-" she began, but he cut her off immediately.

"Pardon me, there is something else I would like to ask of you."

* * *

Takao sighed with exhaustion. "Well, that's the last one." He announced to the empty apartment, as he dropped the last box on the floor and proceeded to collapse next to it. It had taken some time but he'd finally managed to move out of his old apartment and leave all its nightmares behind. After half a month of searching, he'd found a place for his own, instead of leeching on Kagami and Kuroko's kindness (much as he would've liked to continue doing that).

The scars on his back were slowly beginning to fade now; the words were still visible, but he had faith that they would disappear completely, like all the other marks. In his quest to rid himself of his terrible past, he'd also disposed of a large amount of his possessions, so now his entire life was reduced to five regular-sized cardboard boxes. The thought made him just a little bit sad, but he was encouraged by the idea that now he would truly start his life anew.

He was in a new home –much more spacious than the previous one-, and he'd also gotten a new job, since the mini basket team had placed second in the tournament, and a scout from a prestigious elementary school had approached him to ask him to coach their basketball team –which was great, since at the moment he didn't even have any furniture. In one more year he would finish his Sports Education Masters, which would give him the chance to get an even better salary. In the meantime he would be juggling with a jam-packed schedule: school, two jobs, and both his own street basketball team and the mini basketball kids, which he didn't want to abandon. It would be straining, but he was already excited by the new turns his life was taking.

He got up from the floor, revitalized by his sudden resolutions, and decided to start unpacking. The first box he opened was the one with his clothes. His favorite jacket was on top, quite conveniently, since it was getting late and the temperature had started to drop in the last few hours. He put it on and instinctively dug his hands into his pockets. He felt a crumpled piece of paper in the left one, and when he pulled it out and unfolded it, he realized it was the invitation for Midorima's wedding. It suddenly dawned on him that the wedding was in less than two weeks. His heart throbbed in pain, but he forced himself to ignore it. He was not going to start his new life being lovesick and miserable.

That made him remember that he hadn't called Kanako-san to let her know he would not be able to attend in the end. He took out his new cellphone and dialed her number, which was fortunately easy to find on the invitation, since he'd lost all of his contacts when he'd disposed of his previous phone.

"Hello?" Her voice came from the other side of the line, energetic as ever.

"Hello Kanako-san, I'm Takao." He announced calmly.

"Oh, Kazu-chan, long time no see!" she squealed delightfully. "How are you doing? You know, last time Midorima-kun just kicked me out and I couldn't greet you properly, I'm sorry!" she pouted.

His heart ached again, remembering that day and the way his world of illusions had shattered in front of his eyes. He ought to get this conversation over fast before he started to dwell too much in the past.

"The truth is, I have some bad news to tell you." He began, hoping against all hopes that she wouldn't blow up when she heard what he had to say. Those endless hours he'd spent helping her organize the wedding had made it clear that she could be a pretty terrifying bridezilla, after all. "I have become extremely busy, and I'm afraid I won't be able to attend your wedding. I know it's pretty inconvenient for you to find a new best man in such short notice, but there was nothing I could do." He explained, separating the phone from his ear just in case she started screaming.

Instead, she just gasped and oh'd, not sounding even remotely upset. "Did you not get the letter, Kazu-chan? I sent them to everyone a week ago!" she exclaimed, sounding more surprised than angry.

"I'm sorry, you must've sent it to my previous address, but I've recently moved out of that place. What about that letter?" He hadn't been in his apartment at all since July, the first time he ran away, except to pack his belongings and move out, he hadn't even bothered checking the mailbox either. Was she trying to switch the topic in hopes that he'd forget about quitting his wedding job?

"It's just that the wedding and my engagement to Midorima-kun have been cancelled. Good thing you called me, you would've wasted your time going to the church and no one would be there!" She giggled briefly, apparently imagining him all suited-up standing in an empty church and looking like a fool. "I'm surprised you didn't know, I thought Midorima-kun would tell you, since he was the one to break it off."

Takao's heart started pumping really fast and his brain started to buzz in confusion. "O-o-oh? That's unfortunate. I-I-I'm sorry to h-h-hear that." He stuttered, having problems in forming a coherent thought.

"I know right?" she moaned "We would've had the cutest kids ever, what a waste of DNA!" he also heard her huff in disappointment. "But he said he already had someone he cared about and that he couldn't betray his heart. Isn't that sweet? I never knew he could be such a romantic. Midorima-kun's special person must be extremely lucky, won't you agree?"

His head was too busy spinning out of control to notice the subtle insinuation in her tone. He was feeling overcome with a weird mixture of confusion and euphoria. Had Shin-chan really broken off his engagement, out of his own initiative? Had he changed his mind? Would he choose him this time? Why hadn't he called him then, if that was his intention?

The back of his mind tickled upon realizing that Kanako wasn't calling him 'Shin-chan' anymore. Or maybe he was imagining it? Was he thinking too much about this? Would Shin-chan come to knock at his door and take him away in his white horse? That's right, Shin-chan didn't know his new cellphone number or address, maybe he'd tried to call but hadn't been able to? So many questions and he had no way to confirm them, and he was feeling dizzy. His heart might as well burst open his ribcage and explode or something, because it was beating so hard and loud he was sure everyone in a 5 kilometer radius would be able to hear it.

"Oh, you know what, Kazu-chan? Midorima-kun won't let me call him 'Shin-chan' anymore, isn't that _super_ mean? It's such a fitting name for him, right? But he got so serious about it when he asked I couldn't say no. It sounded as if it was something really important." Takao realized he'd probably missed half of what she had been saying, but his inner turmoil was already bad enough without having to decipher her blabbering.

Karasuma Kanako smiled. She could hear Takao's heavy, uneven breathing, and his silence proved he was at least reacting to the news. It was certainly not too late for Midorima and his boy, she thought, pleased with herself. A few seconds later, the line clicked shut, which made her smile grow wider. She remembered his ex-fiancé's stern look when he asked that she dropped the cutesy petname and she giggled, thinking Takao was truly lucky to be so loved.

"_That name… it was given to me by an important person. They are extremely precious to me, and I don't want anyone else calling me that."_

**To be continued**

I can't believe we're entering the final stage of this story T_T I'm getting so emotional! Even if this is sort of a transition chapter. I want to thank you all for the amazing support and comments you've left, I'm very happy many loved the Rainbow intervention! I hope you're ready for the last stretch.

I don't really know what to say, so please tell me what you thought about this. I heavily headcanon that Shin-chan grows super attached to his nickname and it becomes this special secret thing for him and Takao and just nnnnfffgghh… just slay me.

See you next time and I really apologize for taking so long, I just have a lot of stuff going on right now. Thanks for your patient, I hope you're still enjoying it!


	20. With all my heart

**Chapter 19**

**With all my heart**

Shintarou decided to take a short break from packing. He'd been doing it for hours and he wasn't even halfway done. He had _way_ too much stuff, and most of it would probably not fit in his new place anyway. He walked to the kitchen and opened the fridge. It was now mostly empty, with just enough food to last for a couple more days before he moved out. He took out a bottle of water and made a mental note to go to the vending machine later to get hot _shiruko_.

Before he could open the bottle, though, the doorbell rang. He wasn't expecting any visitors today, who could it be at this late hour?

* * *

After hearing the news from Kanako, he'd pretty much thrown his phone and dashed out of his new apartment; unpacking could wait. After running four blocks he realized this means of transportation was not efficient at all and dashed to a bigger street to hail a taxi. He fidgeted the whole way, to the point where the driver asked him if he was feeling unwell and whether he needed to go to a hospital. Takao would have laughed about the fact that he was actually rushing to see a doctor, but he was too nervous for that.

As soon as he found himself in front of Shin-chan's door, he hesitated. His fingers trembled. What if he was jumping to conclusions? Just because the engagement was over didn't mean that everything would just go back to how it should have been seven years ago. Surely, if Shin-chan wanted to mend their relationship, he would have called after canceling the marriage, right? If he really wanted to, he could've asked Kuroko for his new phone number or address. In fact, why was he the one rushing to meet Shin-chan? It should be the other way around. After what he'd done, Shin-chan should come and prostrate himself at his feet and beg for forgiveness. His chest tightened painfully when he remembered those excruciating one-hundred and six seconds waiting, waiting, hoping against all hopes, and being disappointed once again. His eyes were getting watery. And who could say that this would work out? Even if they got back together, wasn't their relationship too damaged? Could they really stay by each other's side after everything that happened? Wasn't he just setting himself up for more pain and heartbreak?

He turned on his heels. He should head back home. If Shin-chan wanted to contact him, he would. If things were meant to be, they'd happen. He chewed on his lip.

Before he could take a single step away from that door, he heard noises, movement inside, a soft, exhausted sigh that would probably be inaudible for anyone whose ears were not so tuned to that voice. He turned to the door once again. Shin-chan was in there. Just a few steps away. Just this door standing between them. His heart ached with longing. His trembling fingers found the doorbell and pressed it, short, quick, almost regretting it halfway. He was such a fool.

Then he wanted to run away, but he couldn't even process that thought before the door was opened and a pair of emerald eyes found his, wide with shock.

"T-t-takao…"

"S-sh-shin-chan…"

He'd pressed the doorbell on impulse, but now that he was facing Midorima, he found he didn't know what to say. He was breathing heavily after the rush, the nerves, the fear, his forehead was glistening with sweat, and his heart was beating at a thousand miles per minute.

"Uhm… would you… like to come in?"

He nodded, still a little befuddled, and mumbled a quick "Sorry for the intrusion" as he took off his shoes and walked inside.

"You look agitated… is everything alright? I-I'll bring you something to drink, you should sit down."

Once Shin-chan disappeared into the kitchen, he finally had a chance to catch his breath and calm down. He looked over at the couch –the place where they had shared their first kiss in seven years- and a lump formed in his throat. It was just then that he noticed the apartment looked strangely untidy and vacant. The shelves were now empty, and a lot of the furniture was covered in plastic. There were cardboard boxes all over the place; most of them were sealed and labeled: "books", "equipment", "kitchen", "lucky items" –Takao chuckled at the last one-, while a few others were open and half-full. This was too familiar to not know what was going on here.

"Are you moving out?" he asked once Midorima was back from the kitchen carrying a bottle of watter.

"I'm afraid I can't afford this apartment any longer." He replied vaguely.

"Huh? Why? Did something happen?" He knew the wedding was cancelled, but even so, the Midorima family was _loaded_, there was no way this relatively modest apartment was beyond their economic possibilities.

Midorima sighed. He didn't really want to discuss that now, but he wouldn't lie to Takao. "My father did not take it very kindly to hear that his son is homosexual." A mildly amused smile crossed his face for a moment, remembering his father's threats about locking out his bank account and cutting him off economically, which he hadn't failed to fulfill.

Takao's heart started beating extremely fast once again. Shin-chan really called off the wedding _and_ confronted his father about it. He felt a little overridden with joy, but for some reason he couldn't find the words to express it.

"Oh. _Oh_. I-I'm sorry about that. I had… heard that the wedding was cancelled, but I didn't think…" It hadn't really occurred to him that Shin-chan's family would be the kind to disown their son if he came out as gay. He knew they were strict and imagined they would flip out if they knew, but he never thought they would go this far. He now regretted pushing Midorima so much about this whole thing. He'd been angry at Midorima for not thinking about others' situation, but he had done the same thing and hadn't really thought it through when he'd asked Midorima to confront his family. Had he been in the wrong all along?

Surprisingly, a gentle smile drew itself on Midorima's lips. "It's a small price to pay, really. It was probably a selfish thing for me to do, but I realized I wanted to be happy. Someone told me I had to fight to achieve it and prove that I cared. That is all."

They stared at each other for what felt like a lifetime, holding their breath, the air pregnant with pause. They were both shaking nervously, cheeks lightly flushed, eyes sparkling with hope.

Kazunari's eyes started to well up with tears, and he looked away to hide them. He was getting overflown with emotions that he couldn't control anymore. "S-s-so now you expect that I-I'm going to feel g-g-guilty about this a-and fall into your arms c-c-crying and f-f-forget about everything like in some chick flick, r-r-right?" he stuttered, trying to sound dismissive but achieving the exact opposite.

Shintarou walked up to him and stood by his side. "Hardly. I definitely do not want you to feel guilty about this. It was my decision and I do not regret it one bit. Like I said, it's a small price to pay."

Kazunari looked down, unable to meet Shintarou's eyes. His heart hurt. "Then why… why didn't you call me? Kanako-san said you canceled the wedding over a week ago."

Midorima sighed. "The truth is… I didn't want you to see this. I… I wanted to get my life in order again… before trying to get you back. Like I said, I did not want you to feel responsible, or that you had some sort of obligation towards me because of this. I have made too many mistakes. No matter how much I want to mend things between us, I would never resort to emotional blackmail." Takao didn't know when he'd started gripping the edge of the seat, but now his knuckles were white and his fingers numb. "That being said… what you mentioned before… about… falling into my arms… I would not mind that at all."

Kazunari looked up to find Shintarou standing mere centimeters away, blushing, his emerald eyes fixed intensely on him. He sniffled, feeling way too upset and way too happy and he couldn't really deal with himself right now because this was too much. "S-s-shin-chan you manipulative asshole!" he sobbed crashing into the Shintarou's chest, so pissed off that everything seemed to be going Shin-chan's way, and yet too happy to try to resist the flow. "After all the trouble I went through… trying to make sense of my life again… trying to get over you and stop loving you… I _hate_ you. I fucking hate you!" He whimpered, his nose buried deep into Shin-chan's chest.

Midorima's arms circled around his lithe frame, squeezing him tightly and he nuzzled the top of his raven hair, getting high on the familiar scent of the man he loved. "This may sound terrible, but I am glad those efforts were fruitless." He mumbled softly, his lips moving to whisper into Takao's ear. "Because if there is one thing I wish for is that you never stop loving me."

Takao gritted his teeth and punched him lightly, his fists felt so, so tiny compared to Shin-chan's body and it was frustrating.

"I'm sorry Takao. So sorry about everything. I… I never intended to hurt you, or lie to you." Midorima cupped his beloved's face in his large hands, gently tilting it upwards so their eyes could meet. "I was just too foolish… too blind to see what was truly important. If you could ever forgive me, I swear I'll devote the rest of my life to make you happy, but I would understand if you decided not to." He wiped Takao's tears away with his thumbs and leaned down to rest his forehead against Kazunari's.

Takao was overwhelmed. He wanted to still be angry, to hate Shin-chan, but he really couldn't. Was he dreaming? Was he truly going to get his happy ending? After everything he'd gone through, was it really possible to feel such bliss?

"Stupid, _stupid_ Shin-chan, you know I can't stay angry at you when you're being all corny like that. You're supposed to be the tsundere character, not the one that says all the romantic stuff; that's not how this relationship works." He pouted, feeling his cheeks heating up, and he looked away, too embarrassed to keep eye contact.

"I've discovered it is quite important that the people you love know how much they mean to you." Takao tried to swat Midorima's hands away, but instead got one of his own caught in between Shin-chan's long fingers. Shintarou brought his love's hand closer to his mouth and pressed his lips on the palm, staring hotly into Takao's silver eyes.

The intensity of the stare made Takao look up to meet Shin-chan's emerald eyes. His chest filled with warmth when he felt the love and adoration that was pouring out of those eyes, as if they were looking at the most precious treasure in the entire world. A smile started tugging at the corners of his lips, and he forgot he was trying to play just a little bit hard to get just to teach that big oaf a lesson, because he couldn't be bothered anymore. Not when Shin-chan loved him so much.

"Well, today must be your lucky day, mister. I just happen to have recently moved to a new place and it's too big for me. I might actually have enough room to fit in a homeless homo, but be warned there's only one bedroom."

Midorima chuckled lightly, and he looked so darnedly beautiful when he smiled it melted Takao's heart. "Oha-Asa did say my life would take a drastic twist for the better today." He replied simply.

Takao felt like replying something, but he really couldn't think of anything anymore. Shin-chan was standing so close he was being enveloped in his body warmth, and he could feel his hot, uneven breathing on his face. His large hands were trembling ever the slightest. He could always read Shin-chan like an open book, and right now he was nervous and exhilarated beyond words.

A certain force of gravity seemed to kick into action when they were in such close proximity. It was as if their bodies would magnetically attract each other and never want to separate. Sometimes, when they were so close, Takao pondered if their bodies wouldn't end up melting into each other and becoming a single entity, and sometimes, that thought sounded wildly attractive, like right now. They seemed to be frozen on the spot, unsure of whether to give the next step or just stand there and stare into each other's eyes for the rest of eternity. Neither sounded like a terrible option, but in the end, gravity came out victorious.

"Kiss me."

He wasn't sure if he'd thought that or said it out loud, but it didn't matter once their lips met in their familiar dance of love and passion that made the rest of the world disappear. Whether the kiss lasted one minute or one year, he wasn't sure either, but that too, was completely unimportant because this moment was everything and everything was finally right with the world after a long time.

"Kazunari…" Shin-chan breathed in between kisses, staring into his eyes intensely. "Kazunari, I love you. With all my heart."

His heart swelled with bliss.

"I love you too, Shin-chan. I love you so much."

* * *

"Whew, that's the last one." Takao huffed in relief, and this time he wasn't talking to his empty apartment. "I can't believe I've had to move twice in a week, you truly are a tyrant, Shin-chan."

"Technically speaking, you only moved once and then helped _me_ move in." Midorima corrected, dropping the box he was carrying and slumping against the kitchen counter, completely exhausted.

Takao felt like replying, but he was too tired for that. Shin-chan had way too much stuff. On one hand it was good because he didn't have any furniture, so they'd been able to fit all of Shin-chan's easily. On the other hand, there was just no room for five boxes of lucky items. He had no doubts they would end up moving away to a bigger place sooner than later; with both of their salaries they'd surely be able to afford something a little bit better. But for the time being, he was content with looking at this place and knowing it was _their_ home.

"It took seven years, but we finally made it, huh?" he mused.

"What did you say?" Shin-chan asked, handing him a much needed bottle of water.

"Huh? Oh nothing… I was just thinking… all those years ago we promised to live together and now it's finally happened. I guess I'm just really happy." He looked at his lover as his lips curved in a toothy grin. "This is where _our_ life together is about to begin. It makes me really thrilled to think about it."

Midorima blushed at the confession and he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose nervously. He didn't answer, but instead looked up at the ceiling; as if he were pondering something and he dug one hand into his pocket.

"Is something the matter?" Takao asked, stepping closer and landing a playful peck on his cheek that pulled Shin-chan out of his contemplations.

Shin-chan cleared his throat and pulled at the collar of his shirt, as if he were struggling to breath. "I was wondering about the timing…" he answered vaguely, toying with whatever it was he had in his pocket.

_Timing for what?_ Takao had wanted to ask, but before he could open his mouth, Shin-chan pulled away from the counter, grabbed his hand by the fingertips and went down on one knee. Takao's heart skipped a beat, kind of knowing what was coming, but not really sure because, dear lord, did Shin-chan really go down on one knee just now? His mind that had been in such a complacent mood just a minute ago was now buzzing.

"You know I'm not… dexterous in adapting to social cues, so this may not be the right time or place…" he swallowed heavily, but never looked away from Takao's silver eyes, his pair of emeralds glowing with determination. "But since you are talking about our new life together… I thought maybe it was a good opportunity." He pressed his lips to Takao's knuckles, still not breaking eye contact.

A shiver went down the Hawk Eye's spine. "_A good opportunity for what?_" he wanted to ask again, feeling like a total idiot, but a lump had formed in the back of his throat and he really couldn't. His face felt unbearably hot, and the spot on his hand where Midorima's lips had rested was tingling. Midorima pulled out a black velvet box from his jacket pocket and opened it, presenting him with a simple white gold ring, that looked like it was tied in a knot on top.

"Takao Kazunari, would you grant me the honor of joining your fate with mine?"

Takao's brain short-circuited and the entire world came to a halt. His heart was racing. Shin-chan was proposing to him. SHIN-CHAN WAS PROPOSING TO HIM. He must be dreaming. This was completely insane. How long had he been there, frozen up while Shin-chan waited for his answer? _Shin-chan was proposing to him_.

"W-what are you talking about, Shin-chan? We're two guys, we can't get married here and we don't have the money to go to America." No, no that was wrong, that's not what he wanted to say, but he didn't know how he should say what he actually wanted to say. Coherent thoughts seemed impossible to formulate.

Midorima's smile and the determination in his eyes never faltered. "There's a temple in Kyoto that conducts symbolic same-sex weddings. That much I think we can afford."

His face was burning now. "Y-y-you seem awfully eager to get married, for someone who just got off a previous engagement." Takao tried to laugh it off, but he was too flustered to even feign a chuckle at the end, and instead fell completely entranced by those emerald eyes.

"I already waited seven years. I finally have the person I love in my grasp. I want to spend the rest of my life with that person, I'm not going to wait any longer." He once again pressed his lips against the back of Takao's hand, but this time, the kiss was completely focused on his ring finger. The message couldn't be any less subtle. "So? What will you answer?"

Takao was in the midst of an emotional overload that was mostly induced by a rush of euphoria. "Y-you already know the answer, s-stupid Shin-chan." He hated acting like a tsundere, Shin-chan was supposed to be the tsundere in this relationship, why was he suddenly acting so bold and romantic? Takao didn't know how to deal with it. When Midorima didn't move, his lips still ghosting over his ring finger and his eyes still gazing at him with unraveling intensity, love and passion, Takao huffed in annoyance. "Go on then, make me your bride, Midorima Shintarou."

Shin-chan was taken aback by this, and Takao took the slightest pleasure in having the upper hand of the conversation, if only for a moment. He watched intently as Shin-chan slid the ring down his finger. A perfect fit. Takao brought his hand closer to his own face and stared in awe at the new piece of jewelry. Somehow, it looked like it belonged there, as if his finger had been specifically designed to hold that ring, and that its existence had been completely meaningless up to this moment.

He looked up again, still in a daze, to find that Midorima was now back on his feet and smiling at him. He had never seen Shin-chan with such a smile. He was blushing too, he now realized. He must've felt awfully nervous making that proposal. Damn, Shin-chan was too cute. And now with that smile. It was small and probably unnoticeable to the untrained eye, but it made his emerald eyes –glazed with joyful tears- sparkle and gave him a sort of angelic glow. He looked beautiful beyond words. His long, elegant fingers found Takao's hand and intertwined with it, bringing it up so he could kiss the ring on his finger.

Takao couldn't resist any longer. He cupped his beloved's face with one hand and stood on his tiptoes to salvage their height difference. Shin-chan caught the gist and leaned down to meet his lips in the sweetest kiss they'd ever shared. His hand moved to the back of his head so it could tangle in between soft emerald hair and pull his love closer to deepen the kiss.

"I love you Shin-chan. I love you so much." He whispered hotly against his mouth. Shin-chan's right hand was resting leisurely on his hip, while the left one was still entwined with Takao's. When Shin-chan's hand moved to the end of his spine to pull him even closer (were they finally going to fuse into a single being, he wondered?) he moaned into the kiss and pulled back for just a second to catch his breath again.

In that brief moment, they looked at each other, their eyes meeting in a burning, intense gaze, and they chuckled, sharing a childish smile as if they had just done some mischief, before feeling the force of gravity pulling them together once again.

This was right. This was perfect. This place, in this moment was _everything_. The place where they belonged; home. And the moment that was always meant to be.

**To be continued**

Technically speaking this was supposed to be the ending, but after putting these boys through so much shit I wanted to write more of their happy life together, so that's what the remaining two chapters/epilogues are about. I will talk some more about the location of the wedding in future notes ;)

So I hope you liked it. And I hope this wild ride has been worth it :) I just hope y'all can be patient for a little longer to get to see the wedding and all the disgustingly fluffy stuff I have prepared for the epilogues. I love these two so much and I love writing them being super romantic and in love. I hope to hear your opinions on this!


	21. There is not much I can offer

**Chapter 20**

**There is not much I can offer**

Today was an extremely important day for Midorima and Takao. The first thing in their agenda was that Midorima finally fulfilled his promise of attending the mini basket team's training. Takao asked his fiancé (he suddenly loved the thought of that word) to wait while he got the kids hyped about the visitor.

"Alright kids, you did a great job in the tournament and were just one little step short of taking the cup. If we train hard and become stronger, I'm sure we can be the champions in the spring tournament and maybe even go to the nationals, how does that sound?"

The kids cheered excitedly and Takao smiled. A part of him regretted that he'd never actually be a father in spite of how much he liked children, but the mini basket team sort of filled that void for him.

"And as I promised, I brought a special friend of mine to help us with training, as a reward for your hard work." He continued, grinning from ear to ear.

"Is it Kagami-san again?" ruby-eyed Rin asked, a mischievous glint in his grin. The kids had loved Kagami, mostly because he got so easily flustered and was so easy to tease.

"No, I'm afraid Kagami was very busy today, but another friend from the Vorpal Swords told me he was very eager to meet you guys." He turned his head lightly and called "You can come out now!" with a big grin on his face.

The children cheered again when Shin-chan appeared in the court. Makoto's eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Kids, this is the legendary Midorima Shintarou, the best Shooting Guard that High School basketball ever saw." He said ceremoniously while Shin-chan bowed politely and the kids exploded in cheers.

"Your coach told me you placed second in the Fall tournament, that's quite impressive."

The children nodded enthusiastically and puffed up their chests with pride. So cute, Takao thought.

"Hey, Midorima-san, why don't you show them _that_?" He offered, winking at him. "You can still do it, right?" he hadn't really stopped to ponder on whether Shin-chan had kept playing basketball, what with how busy he was at the hospital, and he suddenly worried that the miracle shooter had lost his miraculous powers due to lack of practice.

Shin-chan quirked an eyebrow, looking mildly offended by the insinuation. "Give me that ball already, and I'll show exactly _what_ I can do." He replied in a challenging tone. Takao handed him the basketball and watched him walk to the court and stand under the basket, facing the opposite side.

"Oh, oh! He's gonna do it! The full-court shot!" Makoto squealed with delight. Takao didn't fail to notice the tiny prideful smirk that tugged at the corners of Midorima's lips.

As Midorima bent his knees slightly before jumping, it dawned on Takao that he hadn't seen Shin-chan shoot a three-pointer in seven years, and suddenly he felt really excited. He watched in awe as the ball left Shin-chan's long, perfect fingers and arched upwards. His emerald eyes were gleaming with confidence. He wouldn't miss. Shin-chan never took a shot unless he was certain it would hit its mark. The ball's trajectory was straight and perfect, and it flew down the opposite net without even touching the board or the rim. Takao found himself cheering along with the boys. He'd almost forgotten how beautiful Shin-chan was on the court.

The kids ran towards Shintarou, skipping with excitement and bombarding him with questions, and Takao could only laugh. His fiancé was now sporting a smug and satisfied smirk and doing his best at fending off the overly-excited children.

_Way too cute._

"He's amazing, isn't he?" Takao commented, patting some of the kids' heads to calm them down. "And he's going to be helping us so we're strong enough when spring comes."

The kids didn't seem to care much about the tournament, much too busy asking for Shin-chan's autograph and begging him to do it again.

"Perhaps you kids are not aware of this…" Shin-chan said, signing a boy's jersey with a light blush on his cheeks. "but your coach was part of the Vorpal Swords and he was also Captain of the Shuutoku basketball team when we won the High School Winter Cup."

Takao's heart melted, hearing Shin-chan speaking so highly of him. It was extremely endearing watching him talk to the kids as if he was a natural doing it. He'd never imagined Shin-chan would have the patience to deal with overly-enthusiastic children, but he was faring a lot better than expected. The kids seemed to like him, and he didn't show his vulnerable, teasable side, so the children couldn't get on his nerves.

"Of course we know! Sensei is the best coach in the planet, he's super strong!" Golden-haired Nagisa peeped, and Takao had to hold back the urge to 'awww'.

"Indeed he is. You are in the most competent hands, so I have no doubts you will fare excellently in spring." The kids all nodded in agreement. "I'll tell you something. If you work hard and do well in your training, your coach and I will ask our friends from the Vorpal Swords to come and visit you."

This time, the kids cheered so loudly Takao was worried they would break their voices. He had never considered bringing the other Miracles into the equation; even if they were all former teammates, they hadn't really spoken much after graduation, but with Shin-chan on his side, it was definitely possible. Damn, now he felt he had a greater responsibility with these kids. If they didn't win even with the entire Generation of Miracles aiding them, he would feel like a failure of a coach.

"Hey, Takao!" Midorima called him, pulling him out of his reverie. "The kids say they want an encore, but I thought it would be more exciting if we showed them _our _trump card."

Takao's heart was racing. Was Shin-chan proposing…? Oh, he definitely was. He felt a moment of nervousness, they hadn't tried that play in a really long time and he wasn't sure if they were still in synch like they used to. But one glance at Shin-chan and the confidence in his emerald eyes dissipated all of his doubts. He arranged the court with two randomly placed obstacles that would pass as opposing players and asked Rei -the team's Point Guard- to pass him the ball. Shin-chan stood behind the taller obstacle –a tall garbage can with wheels that allowed for it to be moved with relative ease- and waited.

Takao started at the corner of the court and waited for Rei's pass. The kid threw the ball at him, but the shaking of his hands made the ball's trajectory a little hard to catch. Takao had to take an extra step to grab it, and once he did, he dribbled towards the opposite side of the court, as if he was hoping to get a basket in himself. When he ran into his own obstacle –the kids' training bags piled up- he glanced briefly at his left to see Shin-chan already bending his knees and preparing to jump. He breathed. One, two, three dribbles, he timed. He didn't need to look, he knew exactly where his pass would land. It was as if they had never stopped playing together. The motion came naturally to him, like a sort of instinct. The moment he tossed the ball to its intended target, he could hear Shin-chan's heartbeat synchronized with his own. He didn't glance in that direction to check whether his pass had landed, and only seconds later he saw the ball falling cleanly down the net as it was supposed to.

Now he looked at Shin-chan and saw a smile that mirrored his own. His heart was beating at a mile per second , the adrenaline that coursed his body made him want to scream victoriously. Instead, he shared that triumphant grin with his beloved, while the children came back to the court, cheering in unintelligible excitement.

* * *

The second item in their schedule was the one that Shintarou was most nervous about. Playing basketball had temporarily eased all that nervousness, but now that they were halfway to their destination, it had kicked back full force and he was feeling horribly tempted to run away. Takao seemed to notice his state of unrest and casually laced their fingers together, squeezing them reassuringly.

"Don't worry, it'll be okay. Mom has always loved you, you know? She used to say you were such a good influence for me." Takao joked as the street where his parents lived came into view. Takao pulled out his keys and realized it had been a very long time since he'd last come to this place. He'd visited for Obon last year and… yeah, that was about it. He felt like a terribly ungrateful son all of a sudden.

"I'm home!" He called once the door was open. He took off his shoes and tugged Shin-chan's hand gently, compelling him to come inside.

"Big bro!" Kazuha was the first one to come rushing to the door. She was 21 years old now, but she still jumped to hug him as soon as he'd stepped one foot in the house. "What's been up with you, you haven't come around since forever!" she pouted.

"Sorry, got caught up in some stuff." Stuff he didn't want to think about. Stuff they should _never_ know about. "Hey, do you remember Shin-chan?" he added, pointing at his flustered companion.

His sister looked up briefly and then she turned her head to look him in the eye, questioningly. She was the only one in her family who knew what had happened between them. "_Didn't he hurt you really badly_?" she seemed to be asking, and Takao just nodded reassuringly _"It's all fine now_". She appeared unconvinced, but didn't say anything else.

"Hey, are Pops and Mum home? There's something really important I wanted to discuss with them."

Kazuha eyed them suspiciously, with her arms crossed over her chest. "They're watching Mom's drama on TV." She finally replied and Shin-chan tensed up.

_Oh boy, he's really nervous_. For some reason, Takao found that to be extremely endearing. "Can you tell them I want to talk to them? We'll be waiting in the dining room." He said, still pulling Shin-chan's hand and leading him to the aforementioned room. His love's long fingers were trembling slightly, so Takao squeezed them and smiled at him.

A couple of minutes later, Takao's parents entered the room. His mother, Chizuru beamed upon seeing him and rushed to hug him. "You ungrateful child, how long has it been since you last came to visit? We were worried about you!" she complained, hugging him so tightly all the oxygen was forced out of his lungs. "Oh, you brought a friend…" she commented, still too busy suffocating her son, but not busy enough to not notice the 199 cm green-haired giant standing in her dining room. "Hey, aren't you-"

"Mum, I can't breathe!" Kazunari wailed, finally releasing himself from her deathly grasp. "I guess you do remember Shin-chan, after all." He added, trying to catch his breath again.

"Yes, of course, you two were such good friends in High School! You would've never made it to college if Shintarou-kun hadn't spent so much time tutoring you." She replied effusively, and Midorima blushed remembering how much of that 'tutoring' had involved taking their clothes off.

He then remembered the package he was carrying and proceeded to bow profusely. "Thank you for having me. This gift may not be of your particular liking, but please do accept it." He blabbered, handing the box of chocolates and bottle of wine to his future in-laws.

"Oh my, how thoughtful of you, Shintarou-kun. Kazunari could learn a thing or two from a proper boy like you." She took the gifts and put them in a nearby shelf. "We can share them after dinner, now sit down boys, it's so nostalgic seeing you both here again. I'll make something to eat."

Midorima had completely forgotten that, if Takao was energetic and loud, his mother was ten times more so. She was way too fast-pace for a serious guy like him, and it seemed even Takao had trouble handling her. It seemed as if he wanted to stop her so they could get straight to the point, but she was already halfway through the preparation of some elaborate dish, so he just gave up.

"It's good to see you're doing well, Kazunari." His father, Shuuto, much more composed than his wife sat down at the small table quietly.

"Sorry for not getting in touch for so long. I got too busy." He excused himself, sitting down too, not without having to pull Shin-chan's hand to prompt him to do the same. The guy was so tense it was almost funny.

A few minutes later, once dinner was served and they were all seated at the table and halfway through their meals, Takao decided he couldn't prolong this anymore. Shin-chan might just die from nervousness if he did.

"The truth is, Mom and Dad, that I came here because there is something really important that I needed to tell you."

Shin-chan tensed up again. His mother gasped, apparently concerned, while his father just stared at him intently and waited in silence for him to continue. Kazuha didn't even seem to be paying attention to the conversation.

"I'm gay." No roundabouts. No beating around the bush. Although to be truthful, he was actually bisexual, but he had a very strong preference for men and an absolute preference towards Shin-chan, so it wasn't as if there was any chance he'd end up hooking up with a girl at some point (though he had in the past), so explaining that felt pointless. "And I'm in love with this guy. We're getting married in April and would like you to come to the ceremony." He added bluntly pointing at Shin-chan and stretching his arm over the table to hand them the invitation.

His parents looked completely dumbstruck by the sudden downpour of information, and Shin-chan didn't even let them catch their breaths before pulling away from the table and dropping to his knees in _dogeza_, his forehead touching the ground, surprising even his fiancée. This had certainly not been part of their plans.

"I apologize for my rudeness and the inconveniences this may cause, but I would be most humbled if you would honor me with your blessing to marry your son Kazunari-san." He was shaking visibly and barely seemed to be breathing in between words. "I realize this is an uncomfortable request to receive, and there is not much I can offer him but promise that my love for him is unyielding and that I shall dedicate the rest of my life to make him happy."

Kazuha choked on her drink. A thick silence hung over the room. Kazunari realized his face was burning after hearing Shin-chan saying such words. Any doubts he may have had about this, about giving their relationship a second chance (and he hadn't really had any) would've been completely dissipated when those words were spoken. It truly felt as if seven years had never passed. Whatever had he done in his life to be blessed with such pure and unabashed love, he wondered? His heart was overflowing with warmth, and it was hard to hold back the urge to run to Shin-chan, hug him, kiss him, and tell him how much he loved him and how lucky he felt to have him.

It was his father who broke the silence first, his deep voice cut through the air like a razor. "I appreciate your devotion, but are you sure our son is good enough for you? Our family has no money or status, nor do we have the long-standing history that your family has. There will be no merit or benefit in bringing this foolish child into your family."

With that, Midorima finally looked up to meet Takao Shuuto's silver eyes with determination. "What Kazunari-san has given me, no amount of money or status could ever compare to. It is my worthiness of him that should be put into question and not the other way around. I could never imagine or desire any greater merit or benefit than having him by my side."

Midorima's words brought tears to Kazunari's eyes. How long had he been thinking of those words? Or perhaps he hadn't and he had just come up with them on the fly? Either way, the sole fact that Shin-chan had thought those sorts of things about him was enough to make him swoon. There was no greater luck in the world than being loved by Shin-chan the way he was.

Kazunari caught his mother smiling, and his father got up from the table and walked around it to stand right in front of Shintarou, who was still kneeling on the floor. "For a man that can speak so highly and show such sincere devotion for our son, our blessing is the least that we can give you. From this moment you can think of this family as your own, and we shall be honored to make you our son. Now stand up, you have no reason to maintain such posture." He said, extending his hand as a sign of acceptance and peace.

Midorima stood up hesitantly and shook his father in-law's hand, still a little shaken from what had happened. He glanced briefly at his beloved, who gave him a triumphant grin and a thumbs-up. He was pleased to notice Takao was flushing scarlet red up to the tips of his ears.

* * *

"Are you okay, Shin-chan? You haven't said a word since we left my folks' place." He asked, slightly concerned. He'd been so giddy after how well everything had gone, he hadn't really noticed that his betrothed (and it felt so good to think of Shin-chan like that) wasn't acting like himself. "Hey, are you listening to me?" he grabbed Shin-chan's hand and tugged it lightly when he received no response.

"Huh?" Shintarou seemed to be pulled out of a daze, and his eyes focused on his beloved. He didn't even flinch when he realized they were holding hands. For some reason, PDA didn't seem to bother him as much as it did when he was younger. "Yes, I am more than okay. I am… overjoyed. I feel extremely blessed in this moment." He replied, his emerald eyes sparkling with sincerity.

It was sort of strange that someone who'd been stumbling on their own words just a few minutes ago could say something like that without a moment's hesitation, but it made Takao's heart flutter.

"That's _my_ line, stupid Shin-chan. Do you even know how much I've been holding back from attacking you after all the nice things you said about me?" He blushed a little remembering the seriousness in Shin-chan's face when he said that he could offer nothing but love and the dedication to make him happy, _as if he could've ever asked for more_.

In a moment of sudden boldness, Midorima squeezed Takao's hand and leaned down to kiss him, not caring if they were in the middle of the street.

"You may attack me all you want once we get back home." He whispered playfully. It still felt like a dream, that there existed a place they could call '_our home'_.

Takao blushed. Shin-chan seemed to have earned the ability to make him all flustered with extreme ease. It was an uncomfortable position, since he'd always been the one teasing and making Shin-chan blush. He didn't really know how to deal with it yet. He looked up to meet Shin-chan's smiling face that made him swoon. Maybe a little reciprocal teasing wasn't so bad.

* * *

Kazunari panted heavily, breaking their kiss to catch his breath. He was straddling Shin-chan's lap, one of his hands wrapped around the two of them, pumping leisurely. He needed to keep his eyes open most of the time, when his consciousness was muddled with pleasure, his subconscious needed some reminder that the man with him was gentle and loving and would never do him any harm.

It was only recently that they'd decided to give this sort of intimacy a chance, mostly because Takao had insisted. He couldn't let his past tie him down forever, and in his heart he wished for nothing but being able to become one with the man he loved. Shin-chan had agreed on the condition that Takao didn't try to rush it, and thus this was as far as they had gotten yet. He would be lying if he said he didn't want more, but the fact was that his panic attacks would kick in whenever he felt Shin-chan's hands anywhere close to his bare back. Although the wounds had long stopped hurting and the words carved on his skin were slowly fading away, he could still remember the pain and shame whenever they were touched.

He shook his head, forcing those thoughts away. He wanted to relish in this moment, in the warmth of their bodies when they were so close, in the feeling of Shin-chan's hands on his skin and how deliciously he would lose any sense of lucidity when they kissed. After how everything had turned out today, he wanted to enjoy this intimate moment and share their love and happiness with nothing to distract him.

"Is something wrong? We'll stop right away if you're uncomfortable." Shin-chan asked nuzzling his neck gently. Perceptive as ever.

He shook his head and cupped his fiancée's face with both hands, making him look upwards to meet his eyes and planting a small, chaste kiss on his soft lips. "Nothing at all. I just like it, being with you like this."

"I like it too." Shin-chan replied, leaning forward for a second kiss. "I love you, Kazunari." He breathed in between hot, open-mouthed kisses as they increased their pace. He stared into lovely emerald eyes, panting heavily. His heart raced and he felt they were touching the stars together, and in that moment, everything was perfect.

* * *

A few months had passed since they'd spoken with his parents, and Kazuha was really invested in helping to plan the wedding, but today they had to put all that aside for another important thing. Today it was Takao's turn to be nervous, and boy he felt like a wreck. He almost felt guilty for putting Shin-chan through this before. According to Shin-chan, Oha-Asa had said today was a good day for Scorpios to overcome large obstacles, while she'd said Cancers should take the opportunity to mend a damaged relationship, which meant today was extremely auspicious for this endeavor. Shin-chan had even insisted they both carried lucky items, and Takao was oh-so-grateful that this time it had been something he could carry in his pocket (a green handkerchief, praise the gods), instead of, say, a skateboard, which Shin-chan had been proudly carrying around all day on Monday.

He wasn't sure if his nerves would allow him to muster the sort of words the occasion demanded, and most importantly, he was almost certain he could never equal Shin-chan's beautiful vow of love and devotion, so basically he was just caught in a vicious cycle of being terrified, then getting nervous because he couldn't calm down, then terrified again.

"Wouldn't it be best to ring the bell, Shin-chan? I mean, they'd be pissed off if you just walk in like that after last time, right?" he asked, watching as his lover fumbled with the keys to open the door.

"If I ring, chances are Father won't even want to open the door. It's better like this." He replied curtly, pushing the door open.

It wasn't the first time Takao visited the Midorima household, but it had been years since the last time and he'd forgotten just how immense the estate was. It only served to feed his nerves that they'd been inside for nearly five minutes and not a single soul seemed to have noticed their presence. It all seemed so quiet he could hear his own heartbeat thundering in his ears.

"Shintarou." a calm, leveled voice suddenly cut through the silence, making him flinch. He looked up ahead and saw Shin-chan's mother rounding the corner to meet them.

"Hello, Mother. I apologize for coming in unannounced."

Takao realized she didn't seem upset, but rather relieved to see her son. Shin-chan hadn't told him much about the day he came out to his parents, but he'd said his Mother hadn't reacted as negatively as his father, at least not as far as he'd been able to tell. She'd always been very kind to Kazunari, and had once told him how much she appreciated him for being Shintarou's friend, explaining how difficult it was for her son to open up to other people. Hopefully, with some luck, she would actually be on their side.

Her expression changed, though, when she noticed Takao's presence. Maybe he'd gotten hopeful too soon. "Shintarou, dear, have you lost your mind? This is far from an ideal moment. You must leave at once before your father knows; he will be furious. I assure you I have tried to talk him into reason, but he is stubborn, you know that. " She turned to look at Kazunari, her brows creased with concern. "I truly apologize, Kazunari-san, my husband has a difficult temper and it is hard for him to accept new things. I beg of you that you could wait a little longer."

He certainly hadn't seen that coming. He'd feared she would screech and maybe call him some insulting names for corrupting her precious son and betraying her past gratitude, but she seemed just concerned about the father's reaction. He had no doubts now that they could count her as an ally. Takao felt a little relieved by that. He knew that, although the father was the official head of the family, the mother was the one that pulled the strings in the household. He'd never really understood much about these political marriages or how elite families functioned, but Shin-chan had once explained his family situation in layman's terms, so he had a general idea of how it worked. She played the part of an obedient, dutiful wife, but in reality, everyone knew she was the one calling the shots in everything that concerned their family or their shop. Takao had always been awed by her elegance and grace, her eyes were clever and she had an air of ancient nobility and tradition to her, as opposed to the father's more modern corporative outlook. It was a little bit reassuring to have her on their side.

"What would all this ruckus be about, Mahomi?"

Well, there was his hope for a smooth entrance. He was also cornered in the middle of a hallway, with no place to hide from his disapproving father-in-law's wrath. Oh fuck, he was so getting killed today.

"Good evening, Father. I am pleased to know you are doing well."

It amazed Takao that Shin-chan could stay so calm and composed in this extremely tense situation, but then again, calm and composed were some of his major character traits, so he shouldn't really be that surprised. He'd probably gotten it from his mother.

After what felt like an eternity of silence, Midorima Shingen finally seemed to catch up to what was happening in his house, and his face contorted in rage. The vein on his forehead started throbbing, and Takao feared it might explode.

"HOW DARE YOU STEP A FOOT IN THIS HOUSE, AND WITH THIS DISG-"

"FATHER."

Takao had been sort of prepared to be called any sort of offensive names by his betrothed's conservative family, but he hadn't quite expected for things to escalate so quickly. He didn't know Shin-chan's father half as much as he did his mother; in the three years they'd gone to school together, he'd only seen the man about half a dozen times, and never spoke to him. He was more than aware of what may be going through Midorima Shingen's head at the time, and all the offensive words he had prepared to throw at him. He couldn't deny that his heart skipped a beat when he saw Shintarou stepping forward for both of them before any of those hurtful words could even be uttered. The father seemed taken aback by his son's defiance and he appeared to have lost his voice.

"We came because I wanted to have a civilized conversation with you. If that is not possible, let me know right away; I will leave this instant and you shall not hear from me ever again. I mean it. Do not for one second believe that I will stand quiet and allow you to speak ill of the man I love."

Takao's heart swelled. Shin-chan looked so manly and handsome defending him, and he couldn't really hold back a small smile, in spite of the situation. Wasn't he supposed to be the one saying the nice stuff to propose to Shin-chan's parents? He wasn't quite sure now, but he could hardly be bothered with thinking about it too much, not when he was being reminded time and time again of why he'd fallen in love with this man.

Mahomi whispered something to her husband's ear and his face slowly came back to a more calm expression. The vein was still throbbing on his forehead and his fists were clenched tight, but he nodded nonetheless and pointed at the living room with practiced but fake courtesy.

* * *

The air in the room was so thick it was almost suffocating. Takao was grateful for the tea, because it gave him an excuse to avoid looking at Shin-chan's father, who was undoubtedly glaring holes through him right now. The man hadn't even looked at the courtesy gifts he'd brought (and that sake was expensive, damn it), he'd just told his wife to put it away.

To make matters worse, Shin-chan's sister, Shizuku, wasn't even home, so Takao kind of felt cornered in enemy territory. Shizuku had been a kid when he'd last seen her, but she'd always been supportive of their relationship. She'd been Takao's biggest accomplice –sharing information on when their parents weren't home so he could drop by unannounced-, and she would give him adorable photos of Shin-chan's childhood in exchange of movie tickets or discount coupons for cake shops.

"Alright then. Let us hear your 'civilized conversation', Shintarou."

Midorima set down his cup and glanced sideways at Takao. Maybe doing this was putting too much pressure on his beloved, he seemed to be barely able to keep a straight face. But there was no going back at this point. If need be, he could take the reins of the whole operation.

"I want to make it clear that I am not apologizing or going back on what I said last time. I am still gay and I will not marry Kanako. But I do not desire for our relationship to be permanently damaged, for I love and respect you as my parents, and I wish we could talk about this properly."

"If this is about the money, I'll have you know you will not be getting anything while that man is here."

"I am not concerned about the money. If you believe I would renounce Takao's love for something as fickle as that, I regret to say you are not even remotely close to knowing who I am. As I said, I just hope we can mend our relationship and make peace."

"And how do you intend to do that?"

Shintarou pulled out a thin white envelope with a red stripe and a golden string tied in a bow, and offered it to his parents.

"Kazunari and I are getting married in spring. We would be happy and honored if you could join us and celebrate with us."

Midorima Shingen went livid, horrified by the piece of paper his son was holding. Unlike his wife, he had rarely ever met with the detestable man sitting next to his son. He remembered Mahomi talking excitedly about Shintarou finally making a friend, ever so oblivious about that person's disgusting intentions. If he had known that man was corrupting Shintarou, he would've certainly done something about it a long time ago. That impish creature was clearly aiming for his family's money and the ruin of his son was just a means to his wicked purpose. They should have never allowed this scandalous behavior to escalate so much, but he had never imagined that monster would've brainwashed Shintarou to this point. But he would not triumph, not as long as he had any say about it.

"Have you completely lost your mind or are you just making fun of me? Do you think I would ever allow my son to fall into such depraved practices? Do you not see that this creature has put you under a spell? He intends to destroy you with his perversion and ruin this family!" If word got out that a son of the Midorima household was involved in something like this… it would be the end for their family.

Shintarou slammed his fists on the table and glared at his father with fire in his emerald eyes. "I am warning you, Father, if you try to insult Kazunari one more time…"

"Don't you understand, Shintarou, that this is all for your sake? It is not too late to cure you from this disgusting disease. You must immediately cut all ties with this villain and come back to where you belong. It may not be impossible to be forgiven by the Karasuma Group. Kanako-san is a fine woman, she can turn you into a proper man and make you realize all this depravity is but an elaborate scheme so this despicable sodomite can corrupt you and this family! If you refuse to see the truth, then you truly leave me no option. If you would let this… _faggot_ pull you into his world of debauchery, then you shall no longer be my son!"

"Shingen, that is en—"

"EXCUSE ME."

Midorima had been about to open his mouth, if only just to say that he was done with this conversation and tell his father he didn't want to be his son if he would speak such things about the love of his life, before storming out of the house and never coming back, but he was startled to see Takao looking up to meet his father's eyes. His body was trembling, but his face was serious and determined.

His father looked outraged. The fury he'd managed to contain earlier now seemed in boiling point. "You _dare_ talk to me in _my_ house, which is already being defiled by your presence alone? Leave this instant and never show yourself to my son again or I-"

"With all due respect, Midorima-san, I don't particularly care or worry about your threats so it seems really pointless to keep harping about them. I reckon you may not be interested in whatever I have to say, but since you've insulted me and my betrothed _to my face_ on numerous occasions over the past hour, I believe common courtesy dictates that you should at least listen to my side of the story. I have always been deeply appreciative of the Midorima household's hospitality, it would be a shame that such values got forgotten, even in this situation."

Shintarou turned to look at Takao, shocked to hear him skillfully force his father to listen reasonably by attacking his pride on the family traditions. A quick glance at his mother showed she was rather impressed too. Takao may not be the most proper or polite fellow out there, but he'd always had a gift with using words in his favor. In that sense, it may not be that strange that his father thought he was just being manipulated by Takao's persuasion skills.

He watched in awe as his father, who had looked as if he was about to explode like a boiling teapot, with his face red with anger and the veins in his forehead and neck pulsing dangerously, regaining some composure after hearing Takao speak. He almost seemed embarrassed for blowing his top like that, and maybe he was even more embarrassed by the fact that someone he found so despicable had so dexterously put him back in place.

After a moment of silence, Takao finally continued speaking. "It's true that I may not seem like an ideal partner for Shintarou. I am a man, and because of that alone we'll likely face many difficulties and trouble. My family has no prestige, and my job and position are average at best. Even if we hold a wedding, our marriage will have no official bearings and we won't be able to have children or adopt them. It's quite understandable that you desire something better for Shintarou."

Midorima wanted to interrupt Takao to say that none of that mattered, but there was something in Takao's expression that told him he didn't need to.

"Well, it is good to see you understand the situation so…"

"I'm not done talking, Midorima-san. If you would listen to everything I have to say before making any decisions..."

His father looked as if he wanted to protest, but his mother held him by the forearm and that seemed to calm him down again.

"As I was saying, all of that is true. But it is also true that I love Shintarou above anyone and anything else in the entire world. I have loved him for many years and will continue to do so for the rest of my life, of this I have no doubts. I may have no money, status or properties to offer, but I can assure that I can and will be giving him all of this love for as long as I live. And I truly believe I can make him happy with my love."

Shintarou blushed and his heart skipped a beat. It's not as if Takao was particularly reserved about his feelings (in fact, he wasn't at all), and it wasn't as if Takao had never made him a promise of eternal love, but there was something about this one that just overwhelmed him with emotions.

"The reason we came here and have been patiently withstanding your continuous slandering is because you are important for Shintarou and he doesn't want to cut ties with you. And because your blessing is important to him, it is therefore important to me too. I'm not delusional enough to believe you'll come to like me, but I hope you'll see that my feelings for Shintarou are true and that I'd never go back on the promise I made to make him happy. That you trust me on this is all I will ask for." Takao bowed down, with both palms on the table and his forehead almost touching the wooden surface. Just then, Midorima realized that Kazunari was sitting in proper _seiza_, something he'd always been terrible at, and had probably been holding that position since they first sat, around half an hour ago. He'd seemed fairly nervous on their way here and during most of their time in the house he'd been petrified with fear, but he was actually putting so much effort into this meeting, Midorima wondered if he was really deserving of so much love.

"I already said—"

"I am NOT done talking, sir." He raised his head, and this time, his eyes were ablaze with confidence. Midorima was surprised to see his father appeared mildly intimidated by that gaze. "As his parents and the ones who raised him, I'm sure you already know this, but Shintarou is a wonderful human being. He's, of course, not perfect: he's a little bit of an oddball, he's terrible with social situations and also a little bit selfish. But he's also kind, generous and incredibly intelligent. He is devoted and dedicated to everything he does, and be it school, basketball or medicine, he never does things half-way. It's hard for him to trust people, but he's fiercely loyal to those he cares about. And he gives himself entirely –body and heart and soul- for the people he loves. He's just… really special, so much that words can't really express it. I may be an unremarkable guy with an unremarkable background with nothing but myself to offer Shintarou; but if you're so blinded by your prejudices and the misguided aspirations you burden him with, that you'll despise and reject your own son in spite of knowing what a beautiful human being he is, then _you_, sir, are the one who doesn't deserve him."

A stunned silence followed. Midorima could hear his heart thundering in his ears. He looked over at his father, who was sitting speechless and wouldn't meet Takao's eye. His gaze shifted to his betrothed, still holding his perfect _seiza_, his eyes burning with sincerity and determination.

"Y-y-you should leave now." His father finally uttered. It was the first time he'd ever seen him stutter. His mother looked at him, a small smile curling her lips and she nodded and he now knew for sure he had her approval.

* * *

No one walked them to the door, so the distance felt a lot shorter than when they'd arrived.

"I'm sorry Shin-chan. I guess I blew it." Takao said with a faint smile once they'd walked a safe distance from the house. He tripped over his own feet and Midorima reacted barely fast enough to catch him by the waist and prevent him from falling. Takao chuckled. "Haha, I guess my legs are kind of numb from being in _seiza_ for so long, sorry Shin-chan."

Before Takao could try to stand up straight, Midorima pulled him upwards and in one swift motion, brought their lips together in an intense kiss.

"Don't apologize. Don't ever apologize for the things you said in there." He smiled and stroked his beloved's cheek with one thumb. "Thank you." He rained chaste kisses from his forehead, his eyelids, his nose and down his cheek before finding his mouth again. He pulled him closer by the waist, deepening the kiss.

Takao was swooning again. It may have been just a 'thank you', but it meant so much more, so many more things that didn't need to be spoken out loud for them to understand.

"Sh-shin-chan's awfully unconcerned about PDA, I'm going to start believing you're an impostor."

"Kazunari, I told my parents we are getting married. Being seen by strangers seems an extremely minor thing to worry about in comparison."

Takao laughed agreeably and laced his arms around Shin-chan's neck, pulling him in for another completely public kiss.

**To be continued**

Merry Christmas my friends! I hope you got many gifts, and if you didn't get any (like me) then I give you this to compensate!

I don't know why I insist in adding at least one basketball scene in most of my fics when I'm so bad at doing them lmao But the Sky Direct 3P is just so important to me and my Midotaka feelings that I just had to.

"Dogeza" is the most polite way of bowing in Japan. It's almost too polite and exaggerated, and is actually not used very often unless you've made an unforgivable mistake or whatever you're pleading for is a life-or-death thing. In the Beelzebub anime and manga, a running gag is that Oga's dad has a very magnificent dogeza technique.

"Seiza" is a traditional way of sitting that is considered the most "proper", but the blood circulation into your lower legs gets cut off, so unless you're used to doing it (I once met a guy from the tea ceremony club who said that he'd "trained" so he was now able to hold it for an hour, apparently getting accustomed to do it _improves_ your blood circulation), it can become very painful and your legs will go numb. When I studied in Japan they made us a sort-of formal interview and we were sort-of supposed to sit in seiza. One of the girls that was in the same group as me, once the interview was over (it lasted around 20 minutes), couldn't stand up and we had to help her back on her feet (I myself couldn't actually hold it for more than five minutes, I'm an embarrassment).

This was a very talky chapter, but I really wanted to try and tie the loose ends, especially regarding Shin-chan's family. I love Shin-chan's mom, I definitely imagine her as a really smart and regal lady. Also, the title for this fic actually came from this chapter, but after choosing the phrase as a title I thought it looked cheesy to have it in the dialogue so I changed it lmao

I hope everyone enjoyed this, just one more chapter to go!


	22. They really love each other

**Chapter 21**

**They really love each other**

"It's all gonna' be okay, you guys have made it this far, what are you even getting nervous about now?"

_Everything, maybe?_

Rationally speaking, he knew he shouldn't be feeling so fucking terrified, but the irrational part of his brain was having none of that "rationality" nonsense. Because why be calm and reasonable when you can have a fucking panic attack over every little thing, right? Like, for starters, how stuffy this kimono was. What if he tripped and made a fool of himself? Why didn't they get married in normal clothes?

_Because Shin-chan looks perfect with a kimono, that's why._

Then there was the matter of Shin-chan's parents never replying to the invitation. Shizuku said she was coming, but she apparently didn't know about her family. For months now he'd been torturing himself over the stuff he'd said back then, fearing his rash, thoughtless words had damaged Shin-chan's relationship with his family beyond repair. The poor hair-stylist was doing his best to show support, but he was losing his temper with all his paranoia.

The more he started thinking about everything that could go wrong, the more he felt like fleeing. What if it rained and everything was ruined? What if the food was horrible, what if the flowers were inappropriate, what if their friends got bored, what if the honey moon turned out terrible, what if he forgot his vows and…?

_Oh fuck. I'm a total bridezilla now._

He remembered how annoyed he'd been when he was helping Kanako plan her wedding, and he realized, to his horror, that he was starting to act just like her when she was at her worst. But what could he do about it? He would be getting married in a few hours and there were so many things that could go totally wrong, he couldn't think of anything else.

What if Shin-chan changed his mind last minute?

That thought alone made him forget about each and every one of his worries. He chuckled lightly, feeling ridiculous for losing his sanity like that. Even if it rained, even if he tripped on the kimono, if he forgot his vows or if the food sucked, the one thing he was certain of was that Shin-chan would be there holding his hand. That knowledge alone was all the reassurance he needed.

"Alright, I'm ready now."

* * *

They met outside the hotel. The chill of winter was gone, and only a soft spring breeze graced his skin. Shintarou looked breath-taking in his formal black kimono, not that Kazunari was surprised. The suit they'd picked in Tokyo for the wedding with Kanako was divine on him, but you could tell from his composure and expression, and how naturally he carried himself, that –like Kazunari had always known- this attire made him shine the most. It just dawned on him that all of this was real. He was marrying Shin-chan. They would spend the rest of their lives together. His heart raced and he felt impatient.

Shintarou held his breath when his eyes found Kazunari's figure. He could tell Kazunari felt a little bit uncomfortable in the kimono, but he looked indescribably handsome and mature wearing it, almost an otherworldly vision, and once again he was reminded of how lucky he was. A single cherry blossom petal fluttered around them and landed on Shintarou's open palm. Where had it come from? There weren't any _sakura_ trees in the vicinity. He decided it must be a good omen for today and for the future they would share together. He offered his hand to his betrothed and their fingers laced naturally as they walked towards the car that would drive them to the temple.

Passersby stared at them, some took pictures, some pointed at them, others walked away hurriedly, whispered to their companions or looked away in disdain. It wasn't unexpected, this hotel was gaining notoriety for being the only one to offer same-sex wedding services. It would take a while for this country to change so that people like them were accepted into the community, but the fact that this existed and that it would allow them to join their futures and proclaim their love in public was already a pretty big step, and they both felt grateful for that.

* * *

The crowd gathered for the occasion was unsurprisingly small. Kazunari's parents and his sister were there and that was it for his family. His father had called his grandparents, but he said they hung up the phone once he explained the situation. They didn't even bother calling other uncles or cousins, they weren't really close anyway. Kazunari had only personally invited his cousin Yuuto, who was a couple of years younger than him, but they'd played together a lot when they were kids, and had gone to the same elementary school, so they were pretty close. For Shin-chan's family, only Shizuku was present. As far as friends, some of their former Shuutoku teammates had showed up –the true nature of their relationship had apparently been common knowledge in the club-. The Generation of Miracles with their respective partners had come too, including Akashi. Kazunari had never had a really good relationship with him, but after Shintarou explained how much he had helped, they'd started getting along a little better. Kanako had come too. After everything had cleared up, she'd insisted in helping to plan the wedding and, not surprisingly, she and Kazunari had become really good friends, much to Shintarou's dismay. Two of Kazunari's comrades from the streetball team came too, two more couldn't afford the trip to Kyoto and he had reason to believe the other three would not react kindly to hearing they had a gay teammate. None of their colleagues from work had been invited, it would have been too risky for both of their careers. This was one of the many setbacks they'd known they'd have to face, but the fact that they could have this small concurrence to share the happiness of their union made them feel quite blessed already.

They followed the monk inside the temple, with Kazunari's parents in tail. Their friends came in afterwards. The hall was spacious, with a tall ceiling and beautiful gold-foiled sliding doors connecting to the adjacent rooms. Some of them portrayed flying sparrows, while others had a painting of a wide tree, maybe a cypress. Kazunari wasn't very well-versed in art, but he was certain the paintings were at least a couple centuries old. Surely Shintarou and his family were a lot more appreciative of them than Kazunari ever could be. Over the altar there were three long scrolls with paintings of people Kazunari couldn't recognize. There was a small table covered by a red and gold cloth on the left corner, next to the altar, where the priest would perform the ceremony. The room smelled of incense, and the air itself seemed charged with a magical, sacred atmosphere. To know that they would get married, entwine their fates and proclaim their love in such a place, made Kazunari's skin tingle.

Before they could get to their assigned positions, Shizuku rushed inside and grabbed her brother by the arm.

"Father is here." She whispered quickly, making them both stare wide-eyed in disbelief. She giggled. "He says if a priest can approve of this, then he has no ground to oppose it, even if he doesn't agree with it. But the truth is he was really moved by Kazu-san's speech from a while ago. He's still mad at you, though, so don't push him."

Shintarou smiled, obviously happy to hear the news, and Kazunari smiled too. "Proud and stubborn, I wonder why that sounds so awfully familiar…" he mumbled teasingly and his beloved elbowed his ribs sharply just as Midorima Shingen and his wife entered the temple. He didn't look up to meet his son's eyes, but instead went straight to sit a little far apart from the altar, on the opposite side of the room from Kazunari's parents.

The head priest entered the room and greeted them with a bow, then turned towards the altar.

"We will now proceed with the wedding ceremony of Midorima Shintarou-san and Takao Kazunari-san." One of the priests announced while the head monk placed a stick of incense on the altar and began chanting a prayer. Kazunari's heart started thumping. This was happening. It was real.

They were both seated in the center of the room, facing the altar. They bowed their heads and joined their palms in prayer, as did everyone else present. When the chanting began, time seemed to freeze. The smell of incense, the ringing of the gongs and the voices of the monks echoing in the walls and filling space of the main hall made his brain go fuzzy. He looked at Shin-chan again, whose hands were trembling slightly and he realized his were too. The atmosphere was overwhelming, he could barely make out the words of the chants and the flow of time became strange and confusing. It moved slowly and extremely fast at the same time. His heart was thumping so loudly, it was a wonder that no one else could hear it. As he mused this, he realized he wasn't hearing just his own heartbeat. There was another one, just as loud and rapid. Shintarou's. For the third time he looked at his loved and their eyes met and he could hear his heartbeat, his breathing, the blood pumping through his veins and even his thoughts. And he knew Shintarou could hear him too. A spark ignited between their eyes. He'd often wondered what it would feel like to become a single entity with Shin-chan. This was it, and they both knew it. The world ceased to exist and in that moment they were one. Even if their bodies weren't touching, they still knew they had somehow merged into just one existence like they were always meant to be.

When the prayers were finished, the priest approached the altar and lit a candle, then instructed both of them to come closer too, which pulled them both out of their mystical trance. He asked them to hold a long wooden stick with fire on its tip, together, and to light two more candles. Kazunari's hands started shaking violently, but when he felt Shin-chan hold the lighter too, the shaking ceased and they were able to complete the task without knocking any candle over and setting the temple on fire (something that Kazunari had thought terrifyingly plausible).

Finally, they were instructed to move to stand in front of the priest, who was now behind the table next to the altar, holding a large book of scriptures. Kazunari wanted to hold Shin-chan's hand again, because he suddenly felt a little terrified by this, but that would've been improper, so he held back. He gazed at his love from the corner of his eye and caught the serene expression in his face, which somehow helped to calm his own nerves down.

The priest then invited them to recite their vows and exchange their rings. At last, their hands that had been itching to touch, found each other, lacing their fingers so tightly they felt they'd never let go. Shintarou held both of Takao's hands in his, stroking them lightly. Kazunari suddenly remembered how nervous he'd been about this particular part of the event, and how unimportant that nervousness felt now that their hands were bound like this.

"Kazunari, I am grateful to you. You, who has accepted me with all my weirdness, all my awkwardness, my stubbornness and my terrible pride. You, who has given me so many chances after making so many mistakes. You, who keeps loving me unconditionally in spite of everything. Maybe it seems like I've told you this a million times already. That I love you with all my heart, and that I will devote the rest of my life to make you happy. That you complete me, that my life would be empty without you. That I am lucky and blessed to have you, to be accepted and loved by you, to be able to join my fate with yours. Maybe you are already tired of hearing it. But I have wasted too much time making mistakes, missing you, and wishing I had been more honest about my feelings, that saying these things never feels unnecessary. I have nothing but words to show now, but from this moment I wish I can prove with my actions that I am worthy of everything you've given me. And that this intent of mine shall not falter in spite of the hardships, because I am certain that if we stand by each other, we can build our own future, our new happiness together."

Kazunari's eyes were burning. He was in deep shit now. He was supposed to say something –and he'd rehearsed it so many times too- but he couldn't even talk because he was crying so much. His vision was blurred by the tears, and he felt he couldn't even breathe. He felt weak in the knees, and the raw sincerity and determination in Shintarou's beautiful emerald eyes –also glazed with tears- wasn't helping at all. He squeezed his beloved's large calloused hands, which he adored so much (and he wasn't wearing any tape _just for today_ and that small gesture was so special) and managed to bite back a sniffle to take a deep breath.

"You know… Shin-chan… Shintarou, I… always thought I was very skilled with words. But when I was thinking of what I wanted to say to you today, it was really difficult. No promises of love or eternal devotion seemed right. After thinking about it so much I realized that words would never be enough to explain everything we've gone through, to express my feelings for you, or how happy I am for this day and the beginning of our future together. That's what I thought, but after listening to you, I feel a little guilty for not trying a bit harder. So my promise is that from now on, I'll always try harder, no matter what. Because Shin-chan is my best friend, my partner, my Ace-sama, my favorite tsundere and the love of my life, and you deserve that I always try my best. For you, for us, and for our future. And I don't care if I'm worthy or you're worthy, because the fact that we love each other is all that matters to me. And because I know that's all we need to be happy together."

By the time he'd finished the tears had stopped flowing and a comfortable, joyful flush had blossomed in both of their cheeks. He could hear a couple of sniffles in the background, and he could almost swear he knew which of them was his mother's dramatic sobbing. Shintarou grabbed his hand and slid a white gold ring down his finger, right on top of the engagement knot he had given him a few months ago. Kazunari copied the motion, his fingers trembling a little as he watched in awe how beautifully Shintarou's pale skin matched the shine of the ring. He briefly contemplated that this was Shin-chan's precious left hand, and he stroked it with his fingers adoringly, loving the thought of seeing the mark of their bond on one of the fingers that had always been such a treasure to him.

Once they were done with that, the monk presented them with a small cup of sake. Shintarou drank first and Kazunari second, after the cup was refilled, taking three small sips each. The liquid burned his throat and made him a little bit dizzy.

The priest continued with his blessings before handing them a piece of paper and a pad of red ink. Shintarou grabbed it and lifted it so they both could see the text printed in thick black ink. It was a vow that they had to read out loud, together. Kazunari's voice wavered as they started reciting the words. Their voices together seemed to fill every bit of empty space in the hall, just like the sutra chanting earlier had. Kazunari felt tears welling in his eyes again, feeling dizzy from the incense, the sake, and overwhelmed with emotions. By the time they were done reading, he was out of breathe. Shintarou seemed to notice, and gently guided his hand to lay the paper back on the table. He then pressed his thumb to the pad of ink and then to the paper. When he watched Shintarou's fingerprint appear in bright red on the paper, Kazunari felt at ease. He followed suit, while the monk explained the terms of the contract. They stared quietly at their prints next to each other, red like blood in contrast to the black ink of the writing and the white paper. A promise of forever. They turned to look at each other, their eyes locked in a loving gaze that needed no words to convey what they were thinking, the oath they were taking.

Finally, the monk pronounced them wedded and they shared a chaste kiss while their friends and families clapped softly in the background. Kazunari's mother was now wailing loudly too.

Kazunari was surprised to know only thirty minutes had passed since they first walked inside the hall. It had felt like he'd spent all of his life in that tiny room filled with the smell of incense and the sound of ethereal voices. He was blinded by the light of the sun and the cheers and congratulations from their friends that greeted them as they came out, still holding hands tightly.

"Alright, alright you guys, stand right here so we can take a picture to remember this happy occasion, shall we?" Kise, who had recently found his true calling behind the camera rather than in front of it, instructed them, pointing at a spot under the pine trees. Still too bedazzled by everything that was happening, they both let themselves be shoved to the desired location. Kazunari looked up to find his husband looking back at him.

"Shin-chan… we just got married." It was really dawning on him now, and the whole thing was overwhelming.

"That we did." Shintarou replied, a faint blush now permanently stationed on his cheeks. Kise seemed to be telling them stuff, but they couldn't really hear what he was saying, completely captivated with one another.

All sorts of emotions bubbled up from both of their hearts: love, hope, happiness, excitement, and they smiled, never letting go of each other's hands. A gale of wind rose and carried a storm of cherry blossom petals with it, isolating them from the rest of the world, and they allowed the pull of gravity to bring them together in a kiss.

Kise had been trying to make them look at the camera, but he grew quiet when he saw the scene unfolding in front of his eyes. Everyone did. The newlyweds seemed to belong to a completely different world from the rest of them. The whirlwind of _sakura_ petals that surrounded them gave the whole scene a surreal quality. Had anyone ever seen any of those two look so happy, so fulfilled? Could anyone possibly doubt they belonged together? The way they smiled, and how they looked at each other, and how they held hands, everything was breathtakingly beautiful. Kise didn't know when he'd started taking pictures, but he didn't even need to look at them to know they were the most magnificent he'd ever taken. He felt tears well up in his eyes.

"They… they really love each other, huh?" Someone said, but no one could really tell who.

"Yeah… yeah, they do." Someone else replied in equal stupor and then everyone's voices died for what seemed like an eternity, as the pair got lost in each other's eyes.

"Shintarou."

Midorima Shingen's voice cut through everyone's daze like a razor.

"Father."

There was a tense moment of silence. Kanako and Akashi glanced at each other. They had discussed the possibilities of a confrontation and had agreed on a battle plan if it was necessary, but the demeanor of the two Midorimas was of polite contempt, rather than aggression.

"Your mother and I shall return to Tokyo immediately." The father began with a stern face. "So I must give you this now." He handed over a large plain black lacquer wooden box. It had no wrapping or ribbons, just a small elegant detail of green tea leaves on the lid's corner. Shintarou took it, a little stunned, not knowing what to do with it. "I would not allow a son of mine to start a new life without the most basic supplies of our trade. It would be unbecoming, as a member of the Midorima family." He glanced briefly at Takao and scrunched his eyebrows judgmentally and huffed. "At the very least, I am proud that the good education we gave you is somehow reflected in the choices you make." He said with finality before turning his back on them.

Shintarou's mother smiled at them. She was wearing an extremely elegant kimono, probably the most luxurious one Kazunari had ever seen. It was black, with a large pattern at the hem that appeared like a beautiful painting of gold and white chrysanthemums, with dashes of green trees and a golden river in the background. The Midorima family crest was brocaded on both shoulders, the back and the sleeves. The wide obi was a light copper color with a brocade of white ornaments. "Please do forgive your father. It is a slow process." She explained calmly. "It was a lovely ceremony, Shintarou, I am very happy for you." She added, touching her son's cheek lightly with the palm of her hand. Then she turned for Kazunari. "I trust that I can leave my son in your hands, Kazunari-san. Please take proper care of him. It seems like you understand better than anyone how much he ought to be treasured."

Kazunari blushed. He heard Shintarou gasp next to him, and he could imagine his ears burning furious red. It was a cute mental image. "O-of course, Ma'am. You can definitely count on it." He replied finally.

She bowed and turned away to catch her husband, who was already waiting by the black car that had brought them here. He glanced at them one last time and nodded ever so slightly, and if Kazunari wasn't used to catching Shin-chan's subtlest expressions, he would have missed it.

The newlyweds stared at the car in astonished silence until it disappeared in the distance.

"Hey, Shin-chan? Did your father just give me his approval?"

"I think he did. At least I think it is the most acceptance we could have expected from him."

"Well, now I finally figured out where you got the _tsundere_ from. I always thought your mom was too refined for such a thing."

Shin-chan smacked him across the head and he laughed.

"What did he give you, anyway?"

Midorima opened the box hesitantly, and a smile drew itself on his lips when he felt the distinct smell of _home_, and recognized the full Midorima branded _chabako_ set.

"I think he gave _us_ his blessing." He replied simply, feeling his heart warming up to the sight of his husband's smile.

* * *

The reception hall at the hotel was quite enormous, but it felt even moreso given the small concurrence. Shintarou was okay with that, he'd never liked big crowds. And he was more than happy to be able to share this day with his closest friends and family. He couldn't have asked for better. As he walked hand in hand with Kazunari towards the dance floor, their friends clapped and cheered. The continuous clicks of Kise's camera, followed by his squeals of delight were a little bit dizzying, but he was very much looking forward to seeing the photos too. Though he was sure that, even without them, memories of this day would remain vivid in his mind for as long as he lived.

"Everyone, please welcome Midorima Shintarou and Takao Kazunari." Shizuku and Kazuha announced solemnly, and everyone clapped and cheered louder.

Shintarou breathed deeply. He knew what was coming next, and he was awfully nervous about it. He never quite liked doing things he wasn't confident about in public, and dancing had to be somewhere close to the top of the list of things he wasn't confident about. Kazunari seemed to sense his insecurity and squeezed his hand gently. Shintarou smiled, feeling blessed to have him by his side.

Unexpectedly, instead of hearing the recorded track they'd picked for their first dance, the notes that rang across the hall came from real, live instruments. Shintarou looked to the opposite side of the room to find Akashi smiling at them his violin tucked under his chin. Behind him, Shizuku was playing the accompaniment on the piano. It was the same piece they had chosen, but when it was played by people they loved, it felt completely different. Kazunari tugged on his hand.

"Let's go, Shin-chan."

He nodded and faced Kazunari to place his hand softly on his waist. His feet started moving slowly, tentatively. Their clothes didn't allow for a large range of movement, which was fine with him because he could've never learned a more complicated choreography. Kazunari was leading though, and he made it all feel easier, even effortless. For a moment, Shintarou even forgot to make sure he wasn't stepping on his husband's feet.

The piece was a waltz, slightly upbeat and light. It was hopeful, sweet and bright, full of the dreams they shared for their future together and the love they shared. They spun around slowly, taking small steps, their bodies ever so close to each other, sharing mutual warmth. Kazunari was smiling, his eyes sparkling with wonder and his cheeks tinted a soft pink. He was so, _so_ beautiful, and Shintarou felt like the time when he'd first fallen in love because everything felt so new and so perfect.

"I love you." He whispered when the music reached its climax, and it was all he could do not to stop the dance to kiss Kazunari and forget about everything else.

"I love you too." he whispered back, and in that moment, the music went quiet, and almost as if he'd planned it all in advance, Kazunari stopped dancing, stood on his tiptoes, never letting go of his hand, and pressed a soft, slow kiss on his lips. Shintarou pulled him in closer by the waist, melting into the moment. He could hear their friends clapping, and Kise was now sobbing too. It made him wonder how he wasn't crying right now, when he was so overwhelmed with emotions, but it didn't really matter.

"Oi! Save something for the wedding night!" Someone yelled (probably Aomine) and the other guests chuckled. Kazunari pulled back from the kiss, smiling as brightly as ever, and he giggled lightly.

"Can you really blame me, though?" He asked, turning towards the crowd. "I mean, look at him, he's gorgeous!" he made a gesture with his hand, signing at Shintarou from head to toe. "Actually, I don't mean to sound rude, but if y'all could clear out so that we can skip straight to the wedding night, that'd be pretty cool."

Everyone laughed, except for Shintarou whose face was burning. Gods, he loved that Kazunari could be so ridiculously inappropriate some times, but sometimes it just killed him.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, big bro, but it's all too early for the wedding night, and we already have all that food and alcohol, it would be tragic to let it go to waste." Kazuha interjected, nudging them towards their place in the main table. Shintarou turned to look at Akashi and nodded at him with a smile. He couldn't find anything else to say for the friend that had played the music for his first dance as a married man.

They finally reached their seats, facing the crowd. They'd ordered the centerpieces from Shintarou's original choice, the old lady that did the flowers for the shop. She had refused at first –she was close with his father and as offended as he was about their "lifestyle"- but once she'd actually gotten to meet Kazunari, she'd been completely charmed. Kazunari did have that effect on people after all. Shintarou had briefly worried that she was trying to steal his fiancé away. In the end, the flower arrangements with peach-colored roses, white gladiolus and tall lavenders that did match wonderfully with the mint green tablecloth. Kazunari had been a little too much into the preparations, and Shintarou had had problems keeping up with his talks of color palettes, fabrics, flavors and lighting.

Shintarou stood up and glanced once again at their friends and loved ones, and his heart swelled.

"I want to thank everyone for coming and sharing this most special occasion with us. It means a lot for Kazunari and for me to have such kind and supportive friends and we thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, for being here with us, today and every day for however many years you have been part of our lives. I could not have ever asked for better friends."

The guests clapped softly. Kise was finally composing himself after sobbing for the last ten minutes. Kazunari's mother was not.

"Beautiful words, Shin-nii! And now we'll move on to the good wishes from our guests." Kazuha announced, passing a microphone to Kuroko, who picked it up, as if unsure of what to do with it, and then looked up to smile at them.

"I've known Midorima-kun for half of our lives now, and I can't say the experience has been completely pleasant." He began, his face blank. The crowd chuckled and Kazunari covered his mouth to muffle his laughter. Shintarou frowned. "I assume everyone is laughing because they agree." Kuroko added nonchalantly and everyone did laugh again. "It is true that I rarely see eye-to-eye with Midorima-kun. Partly because we have very different opinions on certain things, and are very stubborn about it, and partly because he is thirty centimeters taller than me." Shintarou wasn't sure of why Kuroko had suddenly decided to play comedian, but even he couldn't suppress a light chuckle. "But in spite of that, I have always thought of Midorima-kun as a friend. And as a friend, I respect him and wish him to be happy." He paused briefly to let the final chuckles die out. "It just so happens that Takao-kun is a precious friend of mine too –and much more pleasant than Midorima-kun, I must say." There was more laughter. Shintarou flicked Kazunari's forehead when he stopped trying to hide his giggles. "And because of that, I know for certain that these two are made for each other. They've proved that their bond is strong enough to tear down any barrier and survive even the most furious of storms. I will not wish you happiness, because I know it is not necessary, you have it already. Instead I want to congratulate you, for coming this far in spite of all the hardships you had to face, and for proving one more time that love _does_ conquer all."

Everyone clapped and aww'ed. Shintarou heard Kazunari sniffling a little.

"Damn, I didn't see it coming." He whispered, rubbing a stray tear off the corner of his eye.

The next one to get the microphone was Kise. "You know, many years ago, before I discovered Takaocchi was the evil twin brother I never had," Kazunari laughed loudly and blew him a kiss. Kise winked when he caught it. "I was trying to find Midorimacchi for something, I don't even remember what it was. When I stumbled on Takaocchi I told him 'just the person I was looking for!" he began with a light, cheerful tone. "And when I told him I was looking for Midorimacchi, he asked me why I'd said that. 'Because wherever you are, Midorimacchi's sure to be closeby" is what I answered, and Takaocchi said that was totally not true." He made dramatic a pause. "Well, look at where we are right now!"

The crowd burst into laughter. Kazunari slammed his fist against the table, completely done with attempting to hide his roaring laughter. Shintarou quirked an eyebrow, he hadn't heard of this particular incident before, but Kazunari obviously remembered it. Maybe he'd ask him about it later.

"And by the way, Midorimacchi _was_ indeed closeby too. They weren't even dating back then, and they were already joined by the hip!" Kise continued. There were some cheers and voices calling 'True! True!' and Shintarou wondered if their friends knew them too well. "And now here we are and they're joined by their hands forever and..." his voice started wavering. "And I'm so happy for you two…" he sobbed, fat tears rolling down his pale cheeks. "Damn, I's tryin' soooo hard not to cry… My suits gonna' get all messed up…" he hiccupped. Shintarou could see Kazunari smiling fondly and wiping more stray tears off his cheek.

"Alright, alright, let's all be glad you're wearing water-proof make-up or we'd have to pay to change the carpet of this place." Aomine interrupted, getting the microphone from Kise's hand and shoving a tissue to his face so he could wipe the tears away without messing his eyeliner.

"AOMINECCHI, RUDE!" Kise replied before blowing his nose loudly.

"Anyway, what Ryouta and I wanted to say is that we're really happy for you guys and now that I've seen the wine menu I can sincerely say I'm grateful that you invited us today."

Everyone laughed loudly. Kise squealed "Aominecchi, you're an embarrassment and I'm never going out with you again ever!"

In the commotion, Miyagi-senpai grabbed the microphone.

"I just wanna' say real quick that I'm glad you guys finally tied the knot. I always knew you would, and now lil' Yuuya owes me a lot of money!" he grinned, raising his cup, while his little brother came up behind him and smacked him across the head and stole the microphone from him.

"Midorima! That guy's the best Point Guard Shuutoku ever had. He's so good he was able to make a selfish insufferable so-called-genius cooperate with the rest of the team, so you better treat him kindly!"

Shintarou glanced sideways to find Kazunari at some middle point between laughing and blushing.

"Midochin, I'm just glad you married someone who can actually cook, otherwise you would've poisoned yourself eventually. I feel more relaxed knowing you won't die from eating your horrible food."

His gaze returned to where Murasakibara was standing, towering over all the other guests as expected. Shintarou glared briefly, then saw as the microphone was passed to Akashi, who cleared his throat before speaking to allow the remaining voices to quiet down.

"Shintarou has been my closest friend for the last fourteen years." He commenced solemnly. "Even if we didn't have many interests in common, he's always been one of the few people who could truly understand me, and who I could really trust. I would like to think that feeling is mutual." He made a short pause. "And because I do believe I know Shintarou better than most, I am confident when I say that he is never happier than when he is with Kazunari-san. I think all of us who have known him for a long time could tell. It was obvious since they first met that Kazunari-san was Shintarou's perfect complement. Seeing them today, celebrating their love after all these years confirms that. Shintarou, you said earlier that you were grateful with us for being here with the two of you today. However, I believe I speak for everyone when I say we are the grateful ones. Thank you for letting us share with you both the first day of many years of happiness that are surely ahead of you." Everyone clapped again. Shintarou felt his eyes started stinging, but he bit back the tears and instead turned to look at Kazunari.

"We're very lucky, aren't we?" Kazunari sighed with a large smile and eyes once again watery with tears. Shintarou could only nod in agreement.

"Okay, okay, no more speeches or everyone's faces will be red and swollen by the time we take the photos." Kazuha interrupted, taking the microphone back and away from the crowd. "I just want to say that whoever's patient enough to deal with my Big Bro is an idiot, but also that someone that can make him happy must be incredibly lucky. And I also know that Shin-nii has always been blessed by good luck, so please share it with my idiot brother from now on."

"Oi, Kazuha!" Takao's head snapped towards his sister, who was giggling lightly. Shintarou smiled, they were too much alike.

"I knew Kazu-san was the right one for my brother since that day when he appeared on our doorstep at seven in the morning, looking like he'd just run to Hokkaido and back, and he said 'Cancer's luck was at the bottom today and Shin-chan needs his lucky item'." Shizuku interrupted, and everyone laughed again. "I know better than anyone that Kazu-san has always been able to bring out the best side of my big brother and I could never imagine any other person that my dear brother should be sharing his life with."

"Awww" Kazunari sighed, squeezing Shintarou's fingers in his "This people just won't let me stop crying, will they?" he added, his eyes already a little teary.

"Let us toast, then" Akashi said, raising his cup of champaigne. "For Shintarou and Kazunari-san and all the years of happiness they shall have." Everyone raised their cups too and cheered "_Kanpai_!"

Shintarou clinked his cup against Kazunari's and took a short sip. He'd never been a big fan of alcohol, and didn't quite appreciate the bubbling sensation in his mouth, but it felt like such a meaningless thing to be bothered with. When he put the cup down, he found Kazunari's finger hooked under his chin to pull him forward for a short kiss, the faint taste of the liquor lingering in their mouths.

The food was served, and soon the celebration devolved into people betting how much Kagami would be able to shove down his throat. In the end everyone lost money, since Kagami didn't eat more than his individual serving, and Kuroko's scarce leftovers.

"What do you guys even think I am? I do know how to behave properly, I'm not a troglodyte." Kagami protested, when Aomine asked him whether he wanted to have a second serving or not for the millionth time.

Many laughed in disbelief, Kuroko included.

They sliced the cake next. Murasakibara had baked it himself. The bread was green tea, with white chocolate cream in the middle, and it had five levels. The frosting was plain white, and it was decorated with dark brown sakura tree branches that had delicate flowers blossoming at the tips, all made of chocolate. Shintarou grabbed a piece of the cake with a fork and fed it to Kazunari, who beamed.

"It's amazing! Thanks a lot, Murasakibara-kun, it's perfect! Look, Shin-chan, try it too!" he squealed with sparkling eyes, holding his own fork with a piece of cake that had one of the sakura petals on top, and offering it for Shintarou.

"It really is." He confirmed after taking the piece in his mouth. "Thank you, Murasakibara, it's delicious."

Mursakibara crossed his arms over his chest and frowned. "Well, Midochin was the only one to invite me to his wedding" he glared at Kuroko and Akashi. "so I did my best."

"I'll make sure to invite you too, Murasakibaracchi, this is awesome!" Kise squealed, his eyes sparkling with delight.

"Don't invite me just to get a free cake, Kisechin"

Kise giggled.

The dessert time soon devolved into people betting over whether Kagami or Murasakibara would eat more cake. Many lost money because they bet on Murasakibara, but he was no match for Kagami's apparently bottomless stomach.

"I thought you weren't a troglodyte." Aomine said with a deep scowl.

"Oi, this is different! Look at all that cake, there's too much for so few guests! It's better than letting it go to waste!"

"You're always so considerate, Kagami-kun." Kuroko mumbled, amused, as he counted the money he'd made. Kagami frowned and scooped some of the white chocolate cream with one finger to spread it on Kuroko's cheek, and then he licked it away. Kuroko blushed and hid his face behind his newly-earned money. "Kagami-kun is unfair."

"Did I ever tell you, Shin-chan? They're always this disgustingly cute." Kazunari said, pointing at them. "When I was living with them I thought I'd get cavities just from watching them, I almost couldn't take it!" he said dramatically, although he giggled at the end.

Shintarou smiled at him fondly. It wasn't often that they would talk so casually about those days. The therapy was working very well for Kazunari, but recovery was a very slow process after all, and the past months hadn't been without difficulties. He still had nightmares and panic attacks. Some days, he would wake up so paralyzed by fear he couldn't even get out of bed, and Shintarou had to call both of their work places so he could stay home with him. Some nights, Shintarou had to pull out the extra futon and sleep on it because Kazunari wasn't feeling good enough to share the bed. And sometimes, Kazunari would break into tears out of nowhere and start apologizing for making his life so difficult. Shintarou would hold him in his arms for hours, reassuring him that his life was never as insufferable as when Kazunari wasn't by his side and that all he ever wanted was to see him well. He knew they still had a harsh road ahead of them, but he also knew everything was worth it if it helped Kazunari's healing, and he was sure they could make it out of this storm together.

He noticed Kazunari had a little bit of cream smeared on the corner of his lips, and before he thought twice about it, he leaned forward to kiss it clean. When he pulled back, Kazunari stared at him, his cheeks bright red and his clear eyes wide with shock.

"Sh-Shin-chan, let me make this c-clear to you now, y-you're the tsundere character in this marriage, you can't be doing bold and manly r-r-romantic moves on me or the balance of the universe will be disrupted and we're all gonna die."

Shintarou allowed himself a small smile, but he was cut off before he could reply anything.

"Shin-nii, you have to throw the bouquet now, the bouquet!" Kazuha announced excited, and many in the crowd cheered.

Shintarou blinked slowly, confused. "But… we don't have a bouquet. Our ceremony didn't require one. We could use one of the centerpieces, but I think the effect is supposed to come from the flowers being held during the marriage, so these wouldn't have any special properties."

Kazunari rolled his eyes. "We'll throw this one and it'll have magic properties because I say so." He interrupted, grabbing the bouquet at their own table.

"But Midorima can't throw it because he'll just shoot it to whoever he wants!"

"Don't be ridiculous, these are flowers, not a basketball, it's not like Shin-chan's gonna shoot a three with them, and throwing backwards too!"

"I could do it if I tried."

Kazunari sighed, defeated.

"Right, I'll throw them."

Some of their friends laughed, while some others gathered together, waiting for him to throw the flowers. Shintarou watched with mild amusement as some of them struggled to get into a better position. Kise and Momoi in particular were apparently bickering to get the best spot. Everyone already knew Kise was very obsessed with getting married, but maybe Momoi's earnest in this "competition" would make his oblivious and overly-apologetic boyfriend realize some things. Shintarou just hoped he wouldn't have to tear his friends apart if they started really fighting over a flower bouquet.

"Alright, one… two… three!" Kazunari called, standing with his back to the crowd and throwing the flowers through the air. They flew far from where the people waiting for them were. Instead, to Shintarou's horror, they seemed to be heading straight to where Shizuku was seated, chatting with Kazuha and not realizing the danger she was in. He briefly forgot that the flowers had "no special properties" and almost yelled at his sister to move away from that place, but someone else flashed in front of her and snatched them away. Shintarou sighed in relief. His eyes followed the path the flowers had taken, and he found them secure in Aomine's hands. That was unexpected. Aomine hadn't been with Kise in the group that wanted to catch the bouquet, and he'd always seemed less enthusiastic about getting married, but now he'd launched himself from the opposite side of the room to catch a merely symbolic bouquet.

Aomine got up from the floor and stomped across the room with determination marking the angles of his face, up to where Kise was staring at him, his golden eyes wide with shock.

"D-daiki?"

Momoi screamed when Aomine went down on one knee in front of Kise. Kazunari, who finally turned around to see who had been the lucky winner, jumped and covered his mouth to muffle his own delighted screech.

"Damn it, I really wanted to have a ring for you today, but they had some problems at the shop and they won't get it done until next week, so I hope this is enough." He presented Kise with the disarranged flowers. "Ryouta, would you marry me? It'll take some time before I can save enough money for an actual wedding, but I've always intended to spend the rest of my life with you, and I want you to know that."

Kise's face was bright red and he seemed to be having trouble breathing. "D-d-daiki you c-can't p-p-p-propose in someone else's w-w-wedding, that's so rude! Today's Midorimacchi and Takaocchi's day, w-what am I gonna d-do with you?!" he whined, his voice thin.

"It's okay, we don't really mind!" Takao yelled, a wide grin on his face.

"A rose was Virgo's lucky item for today." Shintarou added nonchalantly.

"See? They say they don't mind. I just… I wanted us to be engaged, officially, just so you never doubt that I do plan on becoming your husband, however long it takes."

Kise was trembling from the top of his head to the tips of his toes. His hands were cupped over his mouth and he was crying once again. "S-s-stupid Aominecchi, y-you're just trying to make me cry again, I h-h-hate you."

"Well, you're an ugly crier, so this way I won't feel like you're too beautiful and that I don't deserve you."

"Aominecchi's the worst."

"But you're still gonna' marry me, aren't you?"

Kise nodded before collapsing into Aomine's arms, the flowers long-forgotten. Everyone cheered when they kissed.

"See? I told you those flowers did have magical properties." Kazunari said teasingly, clapping louder than anyone and snapping pictures of Kise and Aomine kissing and wrapped in each other's arms with his cellphone. Kise would probably be grateful for that. "Isn't this the best? Sharing our happiness with our friends and letting them share theirs with us?"

Shintarou smiled and his fingers found Kazunari's hand lace it with his. There hadn't been many moments today in which their hands weren't entwined into each other. It felt like a good omen for their future together.

"It is. It is the best."

"Okay, wow, that was unexpected, and really cute too! But now it's time to dance and really get this party going!" Kazuha announced.

"Yay!" Kazunari cheered, bouncing on his feet. "Shin-chan, we've got to dance lots, okay? I promise I won't force you to dance with me after tonight." He declared, pulling Shintarou towards the dance floor by the hand.

"I… I actually enjoy dancing with you, even though I am not proficient at it." Shintarou admitted, not putting up much resistance.

Kazunari froze. His lips curled upwards in a big, beautiful smile and his cheeks took on a lovely pink color. "Shin-chan, being so cute is not fair." He said merrily as the music started playing.

Once they reached the dance floor, though, someone tapped on Shintarou's shoulder.

"Shintarou-kun, can I borrow your husband for just this dance?" Kanako asked with a small smile on her lips. "Promise I'll get him back to you in perfect condition."

Shintarou quirked an eyebrow and turned back to look at Kazunari. "If he wants to." He replied simply.

Kazunari giggled. "My, my, Shin-chan, you should be more cautious. Don't you know that it's really dangerous to let the ex and the current get too friendly?" he asked teasingly as he let go of Shintarou's hand to offer the other one to Kanako.

"There is nothing that she could tell you about me that you don't know already. Especially in terms of incriminating or embarrassing matters."

"Oh?" Kanako chirped delighted. "I'll have you share all those stories then, Kazu-chan!" she said, hooking her arm around his and pulling him to where some of the others were already dancing.

Shintarou watched quietly as they started dancing. The song was upbeat and cheerful, some couples were even twirling each other around. Kazunari and Kanako seemed to be in perfect synch. He'd never known her to be a good dancer, but then again, there were many things he'd failed to learn about her. They looked like they were having fun, and he could see their lips moving even in between twirls, exchanging words and laughter. Kazunari couldn't move too much in his formal kimono, but he still looked very graceful in every step he took. He'd have to take some dance lessons so he could enjoy this activity with Kazunari in the future.

His eyes swept over the dance floor. Akashi was holding Furihata Kouki very close by the waist. Furihata looked very insecure and clumsy –he was probably as incapable in this as Shintarou was-, but Akashi was a good lead and Furihata obviously trusted him fully, so it looked as if they were moving effortlessly with the music.

Kise and Aomine were dancing in the center of the floor, and some couples had even stopped to watch them. That wasn't really surprising, Kise had always been a very talented dancer, but what did surprise Shintarou was that Aomine was perfectly able of keeping up with him. Kise's cheeks were still marked with tear-tracks, and his eyes were red and swollen after how much he had cried, but Shintarou had never seen him smiling so brightly. He'd taken one of the orange roses from the centerpiece-turned-bouquet and placed it over his ear. He honestly looked so happy one could've thought it was _his_ wedding party.

Kuroko and Kagami were dancing too, but they were far less talented at it. Kagami in particular stepped on Kuroko's feet repeatedly, and then fretted about it, mortification evident on his face. Kuroko would just wave his free hand dismissively and peck his cheek, while he continued to sway clumsily trying not to crash into other dancers.

Kazuha and Shizuku were dancing playfully in a corner, and Shintarou had to smile. The girls had become really good friends after meeting during one of Shuutoku's games back before he and Kazunari even started dating. They'd stopped getting in touch after they broke up, and he remembered how saddened Shizuku had been about it. He was glad to see they'd rekindled their friendship so easily.

When the song ended, some of the pairs exited the floor. Shintarou saw Kanako and Kazunari walking towards him, their arms looped together.

"Here he is, safe and sound as promised." She said ceremoniously. "Seriously though, after all the things Kazu-chan told me, I'm really starting to regret letting you go so easily." She added with a giggle. Her cheeks were growing a little pink, and he suspected she'd had quite a bit to drink already. "I always knew you were a good catch, but never that good!"

"Sorry, he's already taken." Kazunari replied, circling his arms around Shintarou's body protectively.

"Yes, yes, I know, enjoy yourselves lovebirds, I think I wanna play a little with Sei-chan's boy, he's so easy to mess with." She claimed with a mischievous smirk. "Ah, but you have to dance with me later too, Shintarou-kun, you owe me that at least." She continued before getting lost in the crowd.

A new song started playing, cheerful like the previous one, but with a slower rhythm, and Kazunari clapped in excitement. "I love this song! C'mon Shin-chan, da—"

"Shin-nii, you've got to dance this one with me!" Shizuku announced, appearing out of nowhere.

"Eeeeh?" Kazunari protested. "Is it too much to ask to dance with my husband?!"

Shintarou's heart skipped a beat, hearing himself referred to like that. For moments, his mind couldn't really wrap itself around the idea that they were really married now.

"Oh, come on, Kazu-san, you're stuck with him for the rest of your life, let me borrow my brother for a little while!"

"Fiiiiine."

He let Shizuku pull him into the dance floor. A quick glance around showed they were close to where Murasakibara and his boyfriend, who Shintarou didn't know very well, were dancing closeby. Or more like barely moving while standing very close together. Also closeby was Yuuya-senpai, who apparently had invited Momoi for a dance, and she was showing that she was as talented as Kise in it, except that Yuuya-senpai couldn't really keep up with her skills.

"I'm gonna lead because you're a terrible dancer, okay?" Shizuku said, pulling him back from his thoughts and grabbing him by the wrist with one hand, and the shoulder with the other, to guide him. When she started moving, Shintarou's eyes shot straight to the floor, concerned about following her steps and not stomping on her feet by accident.

"I haven't had the time to say this, but thank you for playing the piano earlier. It was beautiful."

She looked up at him, her bushy eyebrows scrunched slightly. "I hate to admit it, but it was Kazuha-chan's idea. She said having live music would make it extra special, and she's just like Kazu-san, she's a shameless silver-tongue." She explained. "Not like me and Akashi-san needed much persuasion, but I wish I had come up with it first." She mumbled, her cheeks puffed out in frustration.

He smiled at her and said nothing. They danced in silence for a minute, Shintarou still being overly conscious of what he was doing with his feet. Eventually, Shizuku looked up at him, her eyes serious, and he knew whatever she was about to say was the real reason she'd wanted to dance with him.

"Shin-nii I just… I just want you to know how much it matters to me that you finally married Kazu-san." She said softly. "I wasn't making it up before, every time Kazu-san came home really early in the morning just to bring you your lucky item, I thought 'he must be the one'. And when you two broke up I… I thought I'd never see you find true happiness again. I'm so, _so_ glad that I was wrong. I'm sure Mother feels the same way, I remember how happy she was when Kazu-san started coming to the house more often. I think she always knew how special you two are together. And I'm also sure that Father has started to see it too. That's why please, be very, very happy, Shin-nii, and don't worry about us, we'll always be family, even if it takes Father a little longer to realize it. It's all going to be alright, okay?"

Shintarou looked down at her and smiled. She looked truly beautiful today. He felt nostalgic seeing how much his little sister had grown. It seemed that it had been yesterday that Mother had first come home from the hospital and shown him that bundle of blankets that contained a tiny, tiny, screaming human being. He had been seven years old, and he still remembered how it felt to hold her tiny body in his arms, or how she'd always laugh when she saw him. They didn't always understand each other, and they'd said very hurtful things during many fights, but Shintarou had always known he could rely on her as she could on him.

"Thank you." He whispered, tucking a strand of her long green hair behind her ear. "You are the best little sister I could have ever asked for."

She grinned. "Of course I am!"

They didn't say much afterwards. They danced slower than most of the other couples, and Shintarou managed to only step on her feet once. When the song was over, Shizuku stood on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.

"Come on, my new brother-in-law is totally dying to put those awful dancing techniques of yours to use." She said, pulling him back to Kazunari. "He's all yours, Kazu-san, remember we won't accept returns."

"Oho? Does that mean I get to keep him forever? Woe me, whatever shall I do."

Shintarou felt himself blush, but he didn't respond, and just frowned at Shizuku, who made a peace sign before disappearing into the crowd. A new piece started, much slower: a romantic ballad. It was one of the few songs he had chosen –Kazunari was much better versed in party-appropriate music-. He liked this piece. When he played it on the piano, it soothed him.

"Would you grant me this dance?" He muttered, finding Kazunari's hand as if on instinct. Kazunari's face turned bright red

"W-what did I just say about being bold and romantic, Shin-chan, what kind of marriage is this gonna' be if you don't even listen to me?" he whimpered, his eyebrows knit in a tight frown.

Shintarou rolled his eyes and sighed in defeat. "It's not like I really want to dance with you, I am just adapting to the social expectations for the situation." He intoned, unamused.

Kazunari blinked perplexed for a second, but then his expression lit up and he snorted. "Yeah, that's definitely more like it." He said, walking beside him to the dance floor. He let go of Shintarou's hand and circled his arms around his neck, pulling him closer and looking up to stare directly into his eyes. Shintarou's knees failed him for a second. Something about that look and that touch made it hard to even exist, let alone think or attempt to have any control over his body, so he just allowed his hands to find their way to Kazunari's waist, like they always seemed to do.

"This song is perfect to dance like this." Kazunari whispered, leaning his head against Shintarou's chest, leading them to take small steps and sway slowly. "Listening to Shin-chan's heartbeat always calms me down." He whispered softly. "You know? This morning I was very nervous. I was worried that something would go wrong today. I just kept filling my head with all the possible ways in which everything could go wrong." His voice was so soft, Shintarou could barely make out what he was saying. "But then I thought that, no matter what went wrong, Shin-chan would still love me. When I realized that, all of my concerns became meaningless."

Shintarou could feel it, even if he couldn't see it, the loving smile on Kazunari's lips, the way his clear eyes sparkled with hope, the way their hearts beat in unison. He stroked Kazunari's sides with his thumbs and felt him sigh against his chest.

"I am glad that you realized that." He mumbled, rubbing circles on the small of Kazunari's back. "That I love you no matter what. I quite hope that you are always aware of that fact." He felt Kazunari's breathe hitch, and his fingers, tangled in his emerald hair, trembled. "I don't… I _can_ _not_ remember how not loving you even felt like."

Kazunari laughed, soft, sweet and clear like the tingle of a wind chime made of glass. "That's the single cheesiest thing you've ever said to me." He pulled back slightly to look at him directly in the eye. "I can't believe you actually have a straight face after saying such an embarrassing thing." He chirped, his own cheeks dusted in pink. He then stood on his tiptoes until their noses were touching, his eyelashes tickling Shintarou's cheek when he blinked. "Then again, it's the same for me, so I guess I'm embarrassing too."

Shintarou felt his lips curl into a smile and he tilted his face so his lips could touch Kazunari's.

"I guess we have the rest of our lives to share the embarrassment." He whispered against Kazunari's mouth. Kazunari nodded brightly before sealing that vow with another kiss.

* * *

Shintarou shut the door to their suite behind them whilst Kazunari sighed and collapsed on the bed.

"Damn, getting married is exhausting!" he said, burying his face on the mattress.

"The clothes are rented, please don't get them wrinkled." Shintarou admonished simply, already undoing his _obi_.

Kazunari groaned in displeasure and pushed himself off the bed. "Help me get them off, then." He whined, just slightly aware of the tantalizing implication.

Shintarou swallowed hard as Kazunari virtually stopped supporting his own weight and instead leaned heavily on his husband's body to keep himself upright. He tried not to pay much mind to it as he helped undoing Kazunari's _himo_ and _obi_, but he swallowed again when the clothes started loosening up and revealing just a little bit of skin. The fact that it was completely unintentional made it even more provocative.

"Hey, Shin-chan, do you reckon everyone is expecting us to fuck now?" Kazunari mumbled groggily. He was so exhausted.

Shintarou stiffened a little as he pushed the _haori_ off Kazunari's shoulders and folded it carefully so it wouldn't get wrinkled. "I'm afraid I don't really understand what you mean." He replied simply, pressing a chaste, impulsive kiss on his husband's neck, which had just become available to him.

"Well, y'know… it's our wedding night. People are expected to, uh… consummate their marriage right? It's kind of funny if you think about it. Like, maybe your old man is imagining I'm defiling you or something. Or, dunno, maybe Kagami and Aomine are betting on who's on top or some shit like that." Kazunari tilted his head to the side, exposing his lightly tanned neck, inviting further kisses and Shintarou wasn't one to refuse such invitations.

"Can't say I find the thought particularly amusing. It's mildly unsettling, actually." To think that other people were thinking of them having sex made him awfully self-conscious to say the least. That was before even considering whether his father, or, god forgive, Kazunari's parents, where amongst those people. He latched his mouth to the spot on Kazunari's neck where his pulse ran and he sucked lightly, earning himself a soft whimper. He started fumbling with the hakama, and in no time it was bunched down at Kazunari's ankles. With no more clothes to deal with, his large hands settled complacently on Kazunari's hips while he continued his ministrations on his neck.

Kazunari shivered, and that pulled Shintarou out of his short trance.

"You should put on your pijamas. You'll catch a cold." He breathed, taking a step back and blushing when he noticed he'd left a very inconspicuous red mark on his husband's neck.

"That's where you're mistaken. I'm not putting on more clothes. _You're_ taking yours off."

The implication didn't escape him this time, and he chewed on his lip. It was a tempting offer but…

"Taka-"

"Don't." Kazunari stopped him, his clear eyes steady with determination, pressing his fingertips to Shintarou's lips. "Don't say it. Don't even think about it. We just got married. _Married_. It's the happiest day in my fucking life, and I want it to keep being so. I'm done with being held back by the past. What are you even gonna' say? Am I sure? About what? I want you with all my soul, I've never been so sure about anything. Am I scared? I'm fucking terrified, but I want you and _I love you_ even more. I can feel it, it's gotta be tonight. Trust me a little on this one, yes?" He smiled a small smile and kissed the corner of his lips. "That is, of course, if _you_ want me too."

"I can't believe you really need to ask." Shintarou replied as he leaned forward and captured that offending mouth hungrily and he was overcome by the most primal of urges. He circled Kazunari's waist with his arms and pulled his naked chest flush against his clothed one. Kazunari kissed back, mirroring his hunger and moaned into the kiss, his hands wrestling with Shintarou's clothes that were _so_ in the way now. The temperature started going too high, too fast and Shintarou got scared about how quickly he was losing grasp of himself. He pulled back to catch his breath, not letting go of Kazunari, who felt so small and fragile in his arms, and allowing his brain to cool down a little.

"Promise me—"

"I will."

He was still afraid of hurting him and he would've kept arguing the point, had he not looked into those mesmerizing clear eyes to find sincere confidence and a reassuring smile. He was brought back to his senses when the cool air of the room hit his naked flesh. His clothes had disappeared without him noticing, and an insistent mouth was teasing his nipple, demanding attention. He sucked his breath in, he just couldn't deal with this guy. He cupped Kazunari's cheek and nudged a little so he could meet his eyes again.

"I love you."

Kazunari smiled from ear to ear and stood on his tiptoes to peck his lips. "I love you too, Shin-chan."

They resumed the kiss and the temperature skyrocketed once again, but this time neither seemed to be too concerned about it. Still holding Kazunari by the waist, Shintarou took a few steps back until the back of his knees collided with the edge of the double bed. Panting, he broke the kiss, sat down on the edge of the mattress and spread his legs, pulling Kazunari by the waist to stand in between them so he could pepper hot open-mouthed kisses over his chest and belly whilst pushing his underwear down.

"Shin-chan's really eager." Kazunari said, trying to sound teasing, but instead coming off as pretty needy himself, and the fact that he was already half-hard wasn't helping.

"You were asking if I wanted you. I thought you might need a reminder."

"You're not taking your glasses off?" he asked his thumb and index pinching the bridge of the frame. Shintarou stopped him by the wrist before he could proceed.

"I can't _see you_ without them." He replied, his tone hard and unyielding. Being able to watch Kazunari when they made love, observe how his face contorted with pleasure, how he smiled, how his eyes glazed over with need and how his cheeks took on that beautiful, burning red color, had always been one of his greatest pleasures, and he was too blind to be able to enjoy it without his glasses.

Kazunari chuckled and let go of the glasses. "I forgot Shin-chan was a pervert." He pushed his husband down to lie on the bed so he could sit on top and straddle his hips. He gave himself a moment to relish on Shintarou's fevered look, the flush on his cheeks, the desire that clouded his emerald eyes (and how he wished he could stare at them directly, without the lenses getting in his way, but he knew how important it was for Shin-chan to be able to see), how his toned chest rose and fell with his uneven breathing. He ran his hands slowly down his body, tracing his pectorals, pinching his nipples –and earning a very satisfying gasp as a response. Shin-chan's eyes followed the movement of his hands intently as he continued down his abs and stopped to twirl his fingers on the shy bush of dark pubic hair playfully. Kazunari found it particularly delightful to be able to pull a small groan out of his prideful beloved's throat, which he rewarded with a deep kiss. Their height differences made the position a little awkward, but not bad enough to not enjoy it.

The intensity of the kiss escalated rapidly and before they knew it, their bodies had started to rock in sync, creating much needed friction. Shintarou's hand found itself on Kazunari's scalp, digging his fingers through his raven locks and holding him as close as possible, whilst Kazunari continued to tease the pubic hair and its surrounding area. When he started to feel too short of breath, he pulled back and glanced at his love once again smiling even as he felt his neediness running out of control. He nuzzled Shin-chan's left hand, which was cupping his cheek, and pressed his lips to the palm playfully. Shintarou traced Kazunari's lips with his thumb, pressing the corner lightly. Kazunari responded by grabbing his wrist and he smiled when he felt it loosen up, showing they both had the same thing in mind. He parted his lips compliantly and licked Shintarou's fingertips before taking the index and middle fingers into his mouth at once.

The heat of Takao's mouth engulfing his fingers combined with the lustful glance he was shooting him with, sent a shock of pleasure straight to his groin, and he moaned through gritted teeth. His glasses were starting to get clouded with his hot breathing, but he still stubbornly refused to take them off. Once he was through the initial shock he started moving his fingers, exploring the inside of that mouth he knew so well. As he pushed his ring finger in to join the others, he felt Kazunari's tongue circling around the flesh and sweeping lightly over the edge of the wedding band, and he felt almost ashamed to realize how erotic it was to watch Kazunari worshipping his hand like he'd always loved to do. Kazunari closed his lovely eyes, focusing completely on his task, and Shintarou's erection throbbed painfully. He pulled his fingers out, producing a satisfying schlick sound and a protesting whimper from his love. He reached out for the nightstand to find a bottle of lubricant, which he uncapped, pouring a copious amount of the thick transparent liquid on his fingers.

"Huuuuh… So Shin-chan _did_ come prepared for this… You just wanted me to beg for it, didn't you? Such a meanie." Kazunari chuckled, rolling his hips so his inner thigh would rub on Shintarou's manhood and he was rewarded with a needy groan.

Shintarou blushed. He would be lying if he said he hadn't hoped for things to go in this direction –it _was_ their wedding night- and it was also true that he'd waited for Kazunari to raise the issue because he didn't want to make him feel obliged to do it, but acknowledging it made him quite embarrassed. His lubricated hand found its way in between Kazunari's buttcheeks and he tentatively pressed the pad of his index finger on the edge of the entrance, hoping to drive Kazunari's mind away from the issue. In recent weeks they'd gotten as far as two fingers in, but he still wanted to be extra sure that he wouldn't hurt his love.

Kazunari smiled at him reassuringly. "Shin-chaaaaan…pleaaase…" he whined hotly.

Shintarou took a deep breath. He needed to concentrate and clear his brain from the fog of lust to make this right. Once he felt confident in his self-control again, he pushed into the puckered hole slowly, meeting almost no resistance. He still took his sweet time probing around, testing the waters, making sure there was no pain. He smeared the lubricant around the passage before pushing his index further in. The ring of muscle clenched around him, sucking him in deeper.

"Everything alright so far?" he asked calmly. His right hand was holding Kazunari's hip, trying to keep him from squirming too much. When Kazunari lost himself to the heat of passion, he could get too eager without noticing it and he'd try to speed things up when he wasn't really ready for it yet.

Kazunari nodded, his breathing soft and quiet, almost relaxed. "Yeah… it's fine. Feels good. I can handle another one."

Shintarou heeded the request without asking more questions, pushing one more finger inside, this time all the way to the base. Kazunari moaned softly when he started scissoring his fingers, slowly loosening up his muscles. His clear eyes found Shintarou's, half lidded in concentration. He hadn't really thought about how hard this was for Shin-chan, having to stay rational and in control, being ready to stomp on the breaks if anything happened, almost neglecting his own pleasure in favor of Kazunari's, and he felt a little bit guilty about it. They were making love, it should be a moment in which they shared the joy and the pleasure of being together, but in the end Shin-chan couldn't lose himself the way he should. The fingers inside him were starting to reach his good spots, so it was difficult to think straight, but the least he could do was reward his beloved, and so he wrapped his hand around his neglected girth and started stroking leisurely.

"Shin-chan… one more… I think I'm ready." He moaned, rocking his hips to emphasize the point.

Once again, Shintarou nodded and complied, although this time he was even more careful. The finger went in as smoothly as the previous two, and with now three fingers in, he could more confidently stretch and loosen the entrance in preparation, but he could also try to make it more enjoyable for his love. Shintarou didn't have Kazunari's innate talent when it came to the bed, and he wasn't particularly gifted at reading people's feelings, so it was quite fortunate that Kazunari had never been shy when expressing how good he felt, and Shintarou had used that as an advantage to study and learn the most effective ways to please him. Even after all those years apart, that knowledge remained ingrained in his body and he could use it to the fullest in this situation. Curving his fingers just slightly and grazing the muscle around them with his fingernails would make Kazunari shudder, pulling them back leaving just the tips inside before thrusting them in all at once would draw out a long, delicious moan out of his throat and if he pressed just the right spot with the three of them at once, he knew for a fact that he'd make Kazunari see stars.

He remembered briefly their first encounters, how awkward and embarrassed they both felt, how they'd rush towards the end, driven by the desperate fire of youth and a strange sense of urgency. The situation was very different now for a variety of reasons, but he couldn't say he disliked taking it slow, relishing in every moment, in every shock of pleasure that coursed his body, in every moan and plea he could draw out of Kazunari's lips. With his free hand, he grabbed the back of Kazunari's head and pulled him to lie on top of him, their naked chests now pressed against each other, and he saved the small distance between them, eager to taste him, to drink from his warmth and savor the pleasure in his voice.

Kazunari could only marvel at the way Shin-chan's kisses made him swoon, how he seemed to suck the air straight out of his lungs. He probed blindly around to find the lubricant and, still completely immersed in the kiss, squirted a generous amount into the palm of his hand which he spread over Shintarou's manhood, making it slick. He bit Shintarou's lip tenderly to draw his attention and pulled back from the kiss, a thin string of saliva briefly connecting their tongues.

"Shin-chan…" he breathed, rocking his hips to meet the pace of the fingers inside him. "I want _you_… please…" he rose on his knees, allowing the digits to slip out of him with a sinful pop and he stared at those emerald eyes intensely.

"Shin-chan… make love to me…"

Shintarou's heart got caught in his throat. The raw passion in Kazunari's voice, the desire in his eyes, how his body trembled in anticipation as he aligned his entrance with Shintarou's girth, the soft pants that dripped out of his mouth…

"I love you." He whispered, overwhelmed with emotions. He cupped Kazunari's face in his hands and leaned in to press their lips together in a sweet kiss that overflowed with love and longing and devotion.

Kazunari felt the hardened length pressing at his entrance and pushing past the first barrier, and he bit his lip. Shintarou held his hips to keep him from going down any further, letting him adjust to the intrusion.

"There's no need to rush it. You're in control, you decide. I'm right here. I won't let go. Take your time." Shintarou whispered softly, raining light kisses down Kazunari's neck.

Kazunari had to take a moment just to appreciate how Shin-chan was still capable of keeping his head cool enough to reassure him and make him feel safe and loved. The heat that was taking over his body from the inside out made it hard to think straight, but he had to at least make the effort, for Shin-chan needed as much reassurance as he did.

"'S okay… it doesn't hurt." He pushed down a little further, a few tears pooled at the corners of his eyes. "It's been a while but… my body remembers you… I'm… I'm happy…" he smiled, holding to the back of Shintarou's neck as if for dear life.

Trust was of the essence given the circumstances, and thus if Kazunari said it was okay, Shintarou ought to trust him, just as Kazunari trusted that Shintarou wouldn't hurt him. He kissed the tears flowing down his love's cheeks and wrapped one hand around his erection, stroking it gently. It was a mesmerizing sight, the faint blush on Kazunari's cheeks, his eyes sparkling with the tears, and the lovely smile on his kiss-swollen lips. He was beautiful beyond words and Shintarou felt now more than ever the need to treasure him.

Kazunari whimpered and continued taking Shintarou in, feeling his insides burning _oh so good_. He gasped for air when Shin-chan's thumb pressed the head of his manhood and pre-cum started to ooze out of the slit. He panted heavily and in one more motion finished burying Shin-chan into him, filling him up and he threw his head back with a loud moan.

Shintarou had to bite his lip to keep a hold of himself once he was completely drowned in Kazunari's heat. When he felt Kazunari clenching and moving around him, he started thrusting his hips upwards, slowly at first, letting Kazunari decide the pace, searching for the right angle, loving the tightness, the warmth, how right it felt to be connected like this. He sped up the strokes of his hand and their lips met by instinct as their movements reached a nice, beautifully delicious pace.

"Shin-chan… Shin-chan…" Kazunari mewled in between kisses. "Take me, please… all of me. I'm yours… always yours…" he pleaded breathlessly, increasing the pace of his movements, wanting him hotter and deeper and _more_, always more.

_Always mine_. The thought sent electricity and heat all over Shintarou's body and he pulled Kazunari closer by the waist, their chests glistening with sweat and flush against each other. His hand held on to Takao's tender flesh tightly. _I'm never letting you go again_, he seemed to be saying and Kazunari smiled. They'd made many mistakes already, and had been so close to losing each other so many times, but they now had the confidence that their mutual love was stronger than any obstacle they could ever face.

"Will you be mine too? I want you… please…"

Shintarou licked the shell of Kazunari's ear. "I am… I've always been… I'll always be. Heart and body and soul and everything. All yours…" he spoke in a soft deep voice without a moment's hesitation. His prideful self would normally have more qualms about surrendering his entire existence to someone else, but not Kazunari, for he had been his first and only true love, and even when they were apart he'd been the one to own his heart completely.

Kazunari moaned when Shin-chan found the perfect angle to hit his sweetest spot. It was hard to wrap his mind around the thought of having Shin-chan, of belonging to one another, being together for the rest of their lives. It sounded too good to be real.

"I'm not dreaming, right?... Shin-chan's finally mine… we're finally becoming one… ahhhhh." A particularly well-angled thrust muddled his thoughts with pleasure, and he decided this was too good to be just a dream and gave up on trying to make sense of anything.

On one hand, Shintarou was quite amazed that Kazunari could still form full, coherent sentences, even when he was so close to his climax –he himself could barely manage grunts and growls and random words of love- and on the other, he was fascinated by all the words that kept pouring out of that mouth. Kazunari had always been shamelessly vocal about his physical pleasure, and the closer he got to the end, the dirtier and more explicit his reactions got. But this time he wasn't giving luxurious details on his body's sensorial overload, rather, it was as if his inner, most private feelings and emotions, almost as if his heart itself was flowing from his mouth in the form of words. The spot where they were connected tingled and throbbed, and their hearts raced. Dirty talking would send shocks of pleasure and desire down to Shintarou's groin, but these words were just overwhelming him with love. Becoming one with Kazunari sounded and felt like the most wonderful thing too.

"Shin-chan…I'm close… I wanna do it… together…"

Shintarou's large hand found Kazunari's and their fingers laced together as their pace grew erratic, consequence of their approaching climax. Everything was tight and hot and felt so good… Just like during the ceremony, their hearts started beating in unison, and they could hear each other's hearts and breaths and thoughts. Their mutual gravity pulled them together and they met in a kiss that wasn't particularly different from any other they'd shared and it still felt like the sweetest of them all. They breathed each other's name and the entire world ceased to exist as they drowned in a shared moment of pure white ecstasy.

It took a few minutes (or maybe a few hours) for Kazunari's eyes to regain their focus. When he finally became aware of his surroundings again, he realized he had collapsed on top of Shin-chan's chest, breathing heavily. He could hear Shin-chan's quick heartbeat close to his ear, their bodies slick with sweat tangled into one another.

"I'd almost… forgotten how good this was…" Shin-chan breathed, his left hand splayed over the small of Kazunari's back.

"Toldja today was a good day." He chuckled. "That was amazing."

"It was."

They lay in silence a few more minutes, trying to catch their breathes and make their pulses go back to normal, basking in the delicious afterglow, letting their hands absentmindedly explore each other's body. This was pure and absolute bliss.

Finally, Shin-chan sighed and stirred beneath him.

"We should get cleaned up." He said simply, nudging Kazunari to get off of him.

Kazunari pouted. "Don't wanna." He said childishly, wrapping his arms around Shin-chan's chest, fully intending on keeping him down like that.

"I'm not asking you to get in the shower, but we can't sleep like this." One of his hands found its way in between their bodies and pointed at the semen smeared over their lower abdomens.

"Watch me." Kazunari said defiantly, tightening his hold on his husband's torso and burying his nose in his chest.

"It's going to be extremely disgusting come morning."

"I don't care, I don't wanna move."

"You don't have to, I'll go bring us some towels and tissues."

"Shiiiin-chaaaan! I don't want you to move either, get a clue! I'm so comfy like this!"

Shintarou huffed, but ultimately managed to push him off to the mattress and get up from the bed. Kazunari glared at him before burying his face in one of the fluffy pillows. "Stupid Shin-chan." He mumbled, already missing the warmth of his husband's body.

When Shin-chan came back, he didn't even ask for Kazunari to clean himself up, and instead he diligently cradled him in his arms and started wiping him clean with a warm towel. Kazunari let himself be manhandled, loving the fluff of the towel on his hyper-sensitive skin, and just the overall comfort of getting pampered by his beloved Shin-chan. He nuzzled Shin-chan's now clothed chest. Shin-chan was a blessing.

When the towel wiped the sweat from his back, Kazunari shivered and his eyes shot open, but it took him just a moment to remember whose arms were holding him so gently and lovingly. There was no safer or happier place in the entire world for him.

"Hey, Shin-chan?" he mumbled softly, almost melting into the embrace.

"Yes?"

"Why did you come that day?"

Shin-chan didn't say anything. Kazunari realized he wasn't understanding the question.

"The day… when _he_ was arrested. You were supposed to be at the hospital, but you came home when he did."

He didn't know why he was asking the question, in such an inappropriate moment, but he'd been wondering about it for months. Maybe getting touched on his back, where the biggest scars still remained, had triggered it as a gut-reaction. He could tell Shin-chan was startled by the question.

"It's okay, you don't—"

"I felt you calling for me."

Kazunari opened his eyes again and looked up to find Shin-chan's stern expression.

"Felt…?"

"I realize it does not… make quite a lot of sense but it is the only thing I know. I just… I had a feeling. That you were in danger, that you needed me. I felt that I could hear you calling for me and I didn't even think about it." He'd long finished wiping him clean and was now just stroking his hair and shoulders with his hands, slow and soothing.

Kazunari trembled slightly and he grabbed on to the collar of Shin-chan's sleeping yukata. "Shin-chan was destined to be my hero after all." He said, a small smile appearing on his lips. "I'm sorry for bringing that up, on our wedding night to boot."

"Don't apologize. Whenever you feel that you want to talk about that, I will _always_ be willing to listen." Shin-chan stroked his cheek gently and kissed his forehead. "And get dressed now, it is still spring, too soon to be sleeping in the nude."

Kazunari chuckled as he untangled himself from Shin-chan's embrace and reached over to his own yukata, which Shin-chan had brought along with the towels and tissues.

"You're no fun at all."

"You knew that and still chose to marry me."

"Don't try to make it sound like I drew the short end of the stick when you're the one that married a shameless idiot."

He plopped down on the bed and snuck under the covers. He looked up at Shin-chan and spread his arms wide and inviting. "Now c'mere, Takao Shin-chan-san."

Shin-chan rolled his eyes but still lied down next to him. "I am _not_ changing my last name."

Kazunari frowned. "Eeeeh?! Then what was even the—" he yelped mid-sentence when Shin-chan's arms wrapped around his waist and pulled him in for a hug. Once he recovered from the sudden movement, he laid his hands flat on Shin-chan's chest and nuzzled the crook of his neck. His lips found Shin-chan's pulse and he placed a slow, wet kiss on the spot, relishing in the shiver it earned him. Shin-chan's embrace was becoming one of his favorite places to be. Or maybe it had always been so. "I'm not changing my last name either." He pouted, trying to sound upset and vengeful, even if that wasn't at all how he felt.

"I never expected you to do that, I quite like your last name." Shin-chan said flatly, unaffected by his fake dejection. "Besides, I have become too accustomed to saying 'shut up, Takao', it would be no good to have no one in the house with that name."

Kazunari scowled and pulled back from the spot where he'd left a very satisfactory love bite, and looked up to find Shin-chan's gorgeous emerald eyes twinkling with mirth. "Shin-chan is becoming too much of a smartass, I might be a really bad influence for you after all."

Shin-chan actually laughed. Kazunari felt his heart sing to that sound he so loved.

"Oh, the absolute worst."

* * *

Kazunari dropped the last box on the floor and proceeded to collapse on top of it.

"That's it. I'm dead. Tell my parents I love them and that I'm sorry if I ever disappointed them."

Shintarou passed him by, carrying a small box with bathroom supplies and sighed. "And what should I tell your husband? I think he would be completely devastated." He uttered nonchalantly before going briefly to the bathroom to drop the box before coming back to the lobby where Takao was still lost to the world.

"Tell him it's his fault for having so much shit. I swear to God I'm never moving houses again. EVER." Akashi, Kanako and Shin-chan's mother had given them extremely generous wedding gifts, with which they'd been able to get a loan to buy a two-story house that was perfectly located in a middle point between both of their workplaces and was much more spacious than their previous homes.

"I believe that is the whole point of buying a property." He crouched in front of his exhausted husband and flicked his forehead. "Get up, you can't die before we unpack."

Kazunari groaned in protest and stretched his limbs lazily. "At least give me a dose of Shin-chan to recharge my battery." He said, teasingly, thinking his love would get all red and flustered and adorable beyond words. Instead he looked up to find a pair of lips covering his for a quick, chaste kiss and now it was _his_ turn to get all red and flustered and giddy.

"Done. Now get up, I'm too young to be a widow."

Kazunari giggled as he finally forced himself to stand up, only to hold on to Shin-chan's back and embrace him from behind, nuzzling the space between his shoulder blades. "Aren't you gonna' propose now?" he asked, playfully.

Shintarou didn't need to ask where that question even came from. He leaned back into the embrace, placing his hands on top of Kazunari's and marveling on their matching rings. "I'm afraid it is too soon for that. If you so desire, we can move out again in 25 years and renew our vows or something. Hopefully by then we will be able to do it legally."

"Nope, never. I'm never moving houses again. If you make me carry one more box I'm filing for divorce."

Shintarou chuckled and turned around to face his love. "I can't have you doing that. You see, I rather enjoy having you in my life." He responded the embrace, circling Kazunari's waist with his long arms and leaned down until their foreheads touched.

"Good, we can agree on that." Kazunari stood on his tiptoes to briefly kiss his husband on the mouth. "C'mon, Shin-chan, we can be lovey-dovey later, now we've gotta make this place look decent before everyone arrives." he chirped, disentangling himself from the embrace and immediately missing the warmth. Some of their friends had volunteered to help them clean up the place and arrange the furniture, so they'd decided to make a small lunch to celebrate their new home.

Shintarou huffed but ultimately smiled as his beloved walked into the sun-lit living room with a large grin on his lips, his arms stretched wide in the empty space, looking almost angelic with the frame of the sunlight around his lithe figure. Oha-Asa had said today would be a day of new beginnings, of hope and opportunities, of important changes with your significant other. Oha-Asa never got it wrong.

They'd been married for nearly a month now (and Shintarou already had plans for the first month celebration), and living together for almost half a year, but every time they took a new step, everything felt new and wondrous and perfect. They'd been through hell and back to be together, but that had made their bonds stronger, unbreakable. Their promise, their dream from all those years ago, had finally come true and they could face the future hand in hand, continuously finding happiness together.

"Hey, Kazunari?"

"Yes, Shin-chan?"

"I know you said to hold back on the 'lovey-dovey' things but I really want to kiss you right now. If that's okay with you, of course."

Kazunari laughed. "Can't believe you really need to ask."

**The end.**

I can't believe this is over, it's been such an amazing ride and I feel like I put pieces of my soul on this story, I just wanna cry forever about it.

But before that I need to make some clarifications about the wedding scene.

This is a thing that actually exists. The Shunkoin temple in Kyoto has entered a partnership with the Gran Via Hotel to carry out LGBT weddings. You can find more information on the hotel's website: . . I tried looking up the prices, but honestly the reservation site is not very user-friendly in that regard, you can't even check that unless you email them directly asking for details, but imagine filthy expensive, since the package includes the wedding, the styling, the reception, a luxury dinner and a four-night stay at a super fancy suite. Japanese weddings are overall expensive by definition.

I also recommend this article in HuffPost that has an interview with the head priest, where he explains why he started to hold LGBT weddings in his temple: entry/shunkoin-temple-gay-marriage_us_56290990e4b0aac0b8fbeb01

The description of the temple was based on photos I found on its blog. You should go check it out if you want to get a better picture of the scene... The wedding itself, I mixed the information available at the same website and a video I found of a Buddhist wedding. Buddhist weddings are actually a rarity in Japan, most people marry either by Shinto, Western style (catholic) or not religious, so it was hard to come across information about how the ceremony would be. I hope it wasn't very confusing, if you want to see the video search for "Japanese Buddhist Wedding" on youtube, it's a ten minute capsule and although it doesn't quite explain the different moments, it's still good to give you an idea.

In spite of this, I did purposefully avoid giving any descriptions or dialogues for the actual monks, because I thought it would be disrespectful, since they are real living people. I also didn't want to invent characters for the monks, since they have a different name structure from regular Japanese names and I wouldn't know how to go about it.

The kimono Mahomi is wearing is a black tomesode, it's the most formal kind of kimono a married woman can wear and it has five family crests on it. It's not uncommon for people to rent them for marriages or other such formal occasions (like one would rent a tux), but since the Midorima family is rich and prestigious, I'm sure Mahomi owns one

The flowers in their centerpieces are orange roses (passion, intense desire), gladiolus (faithfulness, sincerity, integrity and never giving up) lavender (devotion). While Japanese hanakotoba is different from Western flower language, I was unable to find a decent guide for it, so I went the easy route and used the Western meanings.

The incident described in Kise's speech is actually canonical, it happens in one of the drama CDs. It gets even better when Takao starts asking Kise to tell him more things about Midorima, since he thinks Kise should know more stuff about him since they've been friends for longer, but the conversation ends with Kise saying "see, after all Takao-kun knows Midorimacchi better". It's canon y'all.

In Japan, when invited to a wedding, rather than gifting the newlyweds some home appliance or something like that, you're expected to give a very generous amount of money. The least acceptable is somewhere around 10,000 yen (roughly a hundred bucks), and that's only if you're like a student or unemployed, otherwise you should be giving a lot more than that. For friends it's somewhere in the 30K yen spectrum, and around 50K or higher for family members. Obviously Akashi, Kanako and Shin-chan's mom dished out A LOT more cash, but they're filthy rich, so that's normal.

Also, you guys wouldn't believe the amount of wedding dances and dancing videos in general I watched. I even watched a little of the Rock 'n Roll World Championship and some dance lessons, only to put that knowledge to exactly no use because I can't describe people dancing (nor can I dance worth shit in real life orz). Then again, there's a lot of shit I research and end up not using it at all. In general, it's funny the amount of wedding-related research I had to do about this, considering how little enthusiasm I generally have for weddings irl.

I can't even begin to describe how I feel now that this is over. I want to thank everyone who's read so far, everyone who's left an encouraging comment and everyone who's been patient with me, especially in these past two months. It means a lot to me that I was able to share this with you guys, thanks for all your support. I don't want to make this disgustingly long chapter even longer with my already humongous author notes, but it really means the world to me to have so many wonderful readers. I really hope you've enjoyed this and I can't wait to read your thoughts about it.

Until next time!


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